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.

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 https://anpsa.org.au/plant_profiles/telopea-oreades/
  2. VicFlora Flora of Victoria https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/

Waratah (Telopea)Telopea speciosissima Victorian Waratah

FloraFlora in Australia Flora Index Acacia Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws) Annual Yellowtop Apium prostratum subsp. prostratum var filiforme Apple Bush (Pterocaulon sphacelatum) Australian Bluebell Australian Gossypium Banksia Batswing Coral Tree Billy Buttons Birdsville Indigo Blue Pincushion Bush Banana Callistemon Callitris drummondii (Drummond’s Cypress Pine) Calothamnus quadrifidus Cape Honeysuckle Cassia fistula (Golden Shower) Cattle Bush Common Heath Crotalaria Darwinia wittwerorum (Wittwer’s Mountain Bell) Daviesia oppositifolia (Rattle-pea) Desert Oaks Drumsticks Eremophila Eucalyptus Ficus Flannel Cudweed (Actinobole uliginosum) Georges Indigo Goatshead Burr (Sclerolaena bicornis) Golden Everlasting Goodenia Gossypium Grass and Grasses Grass Trees Grevillea Grey Germander Hakea Kapok Bush (Aerva javanica) Lambertia sp Leptospermum MacDonnell Ranges Cycad Maireana scleroptera Mexican Poppy Minnie Daisy Mistletoe Family Nardoo Native Apricot Nicotiana megalosiphon subspecies sessilifolia Nuytsia floribunda Orange Spade Flower Orchidaceae Parakeelyas (Calandrinia) Pebble Bush (Stylobasium spathulatum) Perennial Yellow Top Pink Everlasting Pink Rock Wort Poached Egg Daisy Portulaca Proteaceae Ptilotus Quandong Resurrection Fern Rosy Dock Ruby Saltbush Santalum Solanum Spike Centaury Spinifex Storkbill (Erodium cygnorum) Striped Mint Bush Sturt’s Desert Pea Sturt’s Desert Rose Tall Saltbush Tangled Leschenaultia Tar Vine Tribulus eichlerianus Upside-down Plant Urodon dasyphylla Variable Daisy Waratah (Telopea) Wertabona Daisy White Cedar (Melia azedarach) White Indigo White Paper Daisy Wild Passionfruit Wild Stock Woolly-Headed Burr Daisy Woolly Bush Yellow-keeled Swainsona

Flora & FaunaFauna Flora Fauna Flora Funga Glossary Funga Related Topics Scientific Classification Backyard Wildlife Floral Emblems of Australia Wildflowers