Waratah (Telopea)Telopea speciosissima Victorian Waratah

The Gippsland Waratah (Telopea oreades) is a species of Telopea. An upright shrub, the Telopea oreades is an upright shrub that grows to about 3 metres, although it has been known to grow into small trees of up to 19 metres high, especially when growing in sheltered locations.

Common Name
Gippsland Waratah, Victorian Waratah, Mountain waratah. The name Telopea derives from Greek telopos, meaning “seen from afar” a reference to the conspicuous flowers and oreades from the greek oreades meaning “of or from the mountains”.

Where Found
Native to south-eastern region of Australia, in the damp forest and temperate rainforests of the coastal ranges and tableland escarpments. Found in East Gippsland, Errinundra Plateau (in the Gippsland region), Orbost across to Eden in NSW and other nearby regions.

It has an underground lignotuber from which regeneration can occur after bush fires.

Flowering in the summer, the flower clusters are terminal, occurring as flattened heads of a compact cluster of individual flowers. The flower colour is red, though a white form from the Errinundra Plateau in East Gippsland is sometimes seen.

The species has dark green, broad, oblanceolate to obovate leaves up to 20 cm long.

Gippsland Waratah (Telopea oreades)
Gippsland Waratah (Telopea oreades)
Gippsland Waratah (Telopea oreades)
Gippsland Waratah (Telopea oreades)
Gippsland Waratah (Telopea oreades)

Images here are from the from Mount Tomah Botanic Garden, New South Wales.

Images © Ausemade PL

  • Scientific classification
  • Kingdom: Plantae
  • Clade: Tracheophytes
  • Clade: Angiosperms
  • Clade: Eudicots
  • Order: Proteales
  • Family: Proteaceae
  • Genus: Telopea
  • Species: Telopea oreades

Footnote & References

  1. Australian Native Plants Society (Australia) – Telopea oreades http://anpsa.org.au/t-ore.html
  2. VicFlora Flora of Victoria https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/

Waratah (Telopea)Telopea speciosissima Victorian Waratah

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