Doryanthes excelsa
Doryanthes excelsa
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
Doryanthes excelsa is native to the warm temperate regions of eastern Australia. Requires a position in full sun or light shade[1]. Requires a deep, well-drained soil with sufficient moisture during the growing season[1]. Plants tend to be quite slow-growing[2]. Flowers are produced in the spring but individual rosettes can take several years of growth before they flower. Flowering can be brought on by bushfires, which also promotes the sprouting of root bulbs[1].. Flowering can be encouraged in a garden setting by ensuring that the plant is grown in full sun[1]. Although the foliage is resistant to frost damage, the developing flowerbuds need protection in areas of heavy frost, particularly if seed collection is planned[1].
Propagation
Seed will germinate readily within 2 months if no more than a year or two old, and is best sown in autumn. Germination can be encouraged by fire or can be assisted with the use of commercial products such as smoke water. Soaking the seeds in water for eight hours before planting may also assist in germination[1]. Plants grown from seed will not flower until at least 5 years old and it can take up to 20 years[1, 2]. Division Plants grown from seed will not flower until about 8 years of age. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Doryanthes+excelsa>
Pollinators
Birds
References
- [1]Growing Native Plants — Australian National Botanic Gardens · http://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/ ↩︎A series of articles giving details of cultivation and matters of general interest (including a few plant uses) on over 250 Australian plants.
- [2]Australian Native Plants Society — http://anpsa.org.au/index.html ↩︎A series of fact sheets on Australian plants. Good photographs, brief description and information on uses, habitat, range, cultivation etc.
- [3]Flora of Australia — http://www.anbg.gov.au/abrs/abif/flora/ ↩︎The full information from the Flora of Australia - on-line. An excellent resource.
- [4]Bush Foods of New South Wales — Stewart S.; Percival B. · Royal Botanic gardens; Sydney, Australia. · 1997 · http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/education/Resources/bush_foods · ISBN 07313-0004-1 ↩︎A small booklet with information on more than 30 species of edible plants. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [5]Useful Fiber Plants of the World — Dodge C.R. · USDA; Washington. · 1897 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ ↩︎A rather dated, but very comprehensive catalogue of fibre plants from around the world. The book can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [6]The Useful Native Plants of Australia. — Maiden J.H. · Turner & Co.; London. · 1889 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Terse details of the uses of many Australian plants and other species naturalised, or at least growing, in Australia. It can be downloaded from the Internet.