Notice

Colin Mills, compiler of the Hortus Camdenensis, died in late November 2012 after a short illness. As he always considered the Hortus his legacy, it is his family's intention to keep the site running in perpetuity. It will not, however, be updated in the near future.

Petrophile diversifolia R.Br.

Small to medium shrub with deeply dissected leaves and terminal clusters of white, woolly flowers.  To 3m. [Blackhall & Grieve – How to know Western Australian Wildflowers p.129/1974, florabase.calm.wa.gov.au].

Horticultural & Botanical History

First recorded by Robert Brown in the Transactions of the Linnean Society of London vol.10, p.70/1810.  I have no information on the introduction of live plants into Europe.

The figure is a watercolour painting of Isopogon formosus, Petrophile diversifolia, Petrophile serruriae, Petrophile macrostachya and Isopogon teretifolia by Ellis Rowan, painted at Albany WA in 1880.  The picture is courtesy of the National Library of Australia.  [Rowan, Ellis, 1880, Isopogon formosus, Petrophile diversifolia, Petrophile serruriae, Petrophile macrostachya, Isopogon teretifolia / Ellis Rowan  http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an6766367]. Petrophile diversifolia is the small, pure white flower in the bottom foreground.

History at Camden Park

Included in hand-written lists in a copy of the 1840 catalogue held at the Mitchell Library, inscribed on the front Wm. Macarthur, 23rd Dec 1854.  [ML 635.9m].  Certainly grown at Camden Park at this time and possibly obtained from Western Australian contacts or from a ship calling into Albany on the way to Hobart and Sydney.

Notes

Published Mar 21, 2010 - 02:44 PM | Last updated Jul 29, 2010 - 05:47 PM

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The painting shows 4 flowering shrubs with pink, yellow and white flowers. Ellis Rowan [url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an6766367]http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an6766367[/url].

Petrophile diversifolia R.Br. | Rowan, Ellis, 1880, Isopogon formosus, Petrophile diversifolia, Petrophile serruriae, Petrophile macrostachya, Isopogon teretifolia | Ellis Rowan  http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an6766367. Petrophile diversifolia is the small, pure white flower in the bottom foreground.

Family Proteaceae
Category
Region of origin

South western tip of Western Australia
Synonyms
  • Petrophile adiantifolia Sm. ex Meisn.
  • Petrophile rhoifolia Sm. ex. Meisn.
  • Protea diversifolia (R.Br.) Poir.
Common Name
Name in the Camden Park Record

Petrophila diversifolia 
Confidence level high