Plant Details

Scientific Name: Banksia aemula
  • Pronunciation: BANKS-ee-ah ay-MULE-ah
  • Common Name: Wallum Banksia
  • Derivation: Banksia: for Sir Joseph Banks
    aemula: aemulus - competing with, emulative
  • Type: Tree, bushy Shrub
  • Family: PROTEACEAE
  • Size: to 20 metres
  • Flowers: Pale green broad cylindrical Spike autumn-winter
  • Fruit: Infructescence: woody. Massive, up to 25 follicle s, Valve s 3-4.5 cm across.
  • Vegetation Type: Dry Heath. Consolidated sand dunes, in swales or sandy flats. Eucalypt open forest near coast.
  • Species List: W1, Hedges, Bush food, SBHS, NLTalks2010, Coolum High, NNP Parkedge/Alex, NNP service road, Kingfisher Bay Resort, NNP Viewland/Brunjes, Girraween, Emu Swamp, Marcus Dunes, BHNR, Arthur Harrold NR, NNS, Regional Ecosystem 12.2.9. Regional Ecosystem 12.3.14. Regional Ecosystem 12.5.10.

Cultural Notes

TAKE CARE! Some information about bush foods and medicines may be anecdotal. Correct identification and preparation is essential:

 Bush food. Flowers dipped in Water for sweet drinks, or rolled in hands to lick the NectarSeed cones used as hair brushes.

 Bush medicine: Coughs and colds - Nectar syrup drunk
 The sweet drink of the banksia Flower is sometimes mixed with wattle gum. The Aborigines also made a weak form of alcohol, which is called 'bull' or 'bool' from the banksia, leaving the liquid to ferment.

Identification Notes

Stigma conical (B. serrata has cylindrical Stigma)

Landscaping Notes

Noosa Council Preferred Species list. Suitable Plant for appropriate soil conditions (see Vegetation type)

Feature foliage

Successfully propagated by Coolum Community Native Nursery
Successfully propagated by Tin Can Bay City Farm Nursery
Successfully propagated by Mooloolah Native Nursery

Screens and hedges (relatively slow-growing.)

Associated Fauna

Bird attracting, butterfly attracting. Butterfly host Plant: Fiery jewel. Bees, wasps and other insects like sucking the Nectar from the banksia flowers.

  • Banksia aemula
  • Banksia aemula
  • Banksia aemula
  • Banksia aemula
  • Banksia aemula
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