Prickly Honeysuckle  |  

Lambertia echinata subsp. echinata, Family Proteaceae, also known as Prickly Honeysuckle, is a prickly shrub growing to 1 m with many spreading branches and hairy stems. Leaves are to 4 cm long, and are medium green to bluish-green, tapering towards the stem and divided into 3Ð5 lobes terminating in long sharp points, and have prominently raised surface veins. Trumpet-shaped flowers occur from July to November, are up to 5 cm long, and are arranged in sevens. An outer floral whorl of four orange-red to pink perianth segments unite to form a long tube 5 cm wide. Woody fruit are beaked, shiny, grey, and up to 2 cm long. Prickly Honeysuckle differs from other closely related subspecies L. echinata subsp. citrina and Western Prickly Honeysuckle (L. echinata subsp. occidentalis) in having flowers that are deep pink to red, rather than yellow (Dixon, 1997; Keighery, 1997; Brown et al., 1998; Craig & Coates, 2001; Monks et al., 2001; DEC, 2008).