HAKEA

There are a number of very interesting Australian plants that flower during winter. This 'Pincushion' Hakea (Hakea laurina) in the photo below is growing in our neighbours garden. It is a hardy medium sized shrub or small tree with thick leaves that have a slightly grey tinge and comes from Western Australia. 

The flowers are quite fascinating in shape. When I was a child they grew in the school ground and I thought they looked like a sky rocket firework exploding!

This close-up shows a flower just opening and the styles emerging from the rich pink centre are bent like hairpins, these subsequently straighten out. Clusters of the nuts are also visible on the branch. 

I decided to create a horizontal arrangement and have removed many leaves on the right branch, particularly above the line. This contributes to the reach of the branch in that direction. On the left-hand side I have removed almost all of the leaves below the branch. The vase is ceramic artist Graeme Wilkie.

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Greetings from Christopher
6th July 2013