page_title: Telopea truncata
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Telopea truncata / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: Telopea truncata "St marys Sunrise"
context_page_description: Telopea truncata, commonly known as the Tasmanian waratah, is a plant in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to Tasmania where it is found on moist acidic soils at altitudes of 600 to 1200 m. Telopea truncata is a component of alpine eucalypt forest, rainforest and scrub communities. It grows as a multistemmed shrub to a height of 3 metres, or occasionally as a small tree to 10 m high, with red flower heads, known as inflorescences, appearing over the Tasmanian summer and bearing 10 to 35 individual flowers. Yellow-flowered forms are occasionally seen, but do not form a population distinct from the rest of the species.
  Collected by French botanist Jacques Labillardière in 1792–93, Telopea truncata was first scientifically described in 1805. Genetic analysis revealed that the Tasmanian waratah is the most distinctive of the five waratah species. It can be cultivated in temperate climates, requiring soils with good drainage and ample moisture in part-shaded or sunny positions. Several commercially available cultivars that are hybrids of T. truncata with the New South Wales waratah and Gippsland waratah have been developed.
context_section_description: The Tasmanian waratah is a large erect shrub up to 3 metres (10 ft) in height with several stems, although it sometimes grows as a single-stemmed tree to 10 m (35 ft) high. Unlike the New South Wales waratah (T. speciosissima), which has a few stems topped with flowers, the stems of the Tasmanian waratah branch freely, with numerous smaller branches topped with flower heads. Younger branches and flower heads frequently have a coating of brownish hairs. The narrow adult leaves are 3–14 cm (1 ¹⁄₈–5 ¹⁄₂ in) long and 0.5–2.2 cm (¹⁄₄–⁷⁄₈ in) across and have a rough texture. Spathulate (spoon-shaped) to obovate in shape, they have smooth, slightly down-curved margins. The undersurface of the leaves is hairy. Occasional lobed leaves are seen.
  Flowering occurs from October to January, and is related to altitude: plants at lower elevations flower earlier than ones higher up. The flower heads, known as inflorescences, are terminal—that is, they arise on the ends of small branches—and are surrounded by small inconspicuous hairy bracts. This sets T. truncata apart from all other waratah species, which have hairless bracts. In the shape of a flattened raceme, the flower heads are 3.5–6 cm (1 ³⁄₈–2 ³⁄₈ in) in diameter and composed of 10 to 35 individual flowers. They are most commonly bright red, though scattered yellow-flowered plants occur. These were described as forma lutea but are mere colour variations and not genetically distinct. Yellow-flowered plants have both red- and yellow-flowered progeny. Anthesis is basipetal; that is, the flowers at the base (edges) of the flower head open first. The flower is composed of a 2 cm-long perianth on a 1 cm-long stalk, with a pronounced kink in the style above the  ovary; all other waratah species have gently incurving styles. Anatomically, the individual flower bears a sessile anther (that is, it lacks a filament), which lies next to the stigma at the end of the style. The ovary lies at the base of the style and atop a stalk known as the gynophore, and it is from here that the seed pod then develops. Meanwhile, a crescent-shaped nectary lies at the base of the gynophore.
  After flowering, the curved leathery to woody follicles develop. Hanging downwards on wooden stalks, these are roughly oblong in shape, and measure around 5 cm (2 in) long. They split longitudinally to release the winged seeds, which are ripe around March. There are around 16 seeds, which are arranged in two rows. Wooden structures known as lamellae separate the seeds from each other and the follicle walls.
caption: Yellow-flowered form in cultivation, Hobart
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "5312", "Image ImageLength": "2988", "Image Make": "samsung", "Image Model": "SM-G920I", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "G920IDVU2COGA", "Image DateTime": "2015:10:25 12:28:35", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "2310", "Image XPComment": "[84, 0, 32, 0, 116, 0, 114, 0, 117, 0, 110, 0, 99, 0, 97, 0, 116, 0, 97, 0, ... ]", "Image XPKeywords": "[97, 0, 110, 0, 100, 0, 114, 0, 111, 0, 105, 0, 100, 0, 0, 0]", "Image Padding": "[]", "Thumbnail ImageWidth": "512", "Thumbnail ImageLength": "288", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "5168", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "30618", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/434", "EXIF FNumber": "19/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "40", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2015:10:25 12:28:35", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2015:10:25 12:28:35", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "219/25", "EXIF ApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "27/4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF MeteringMode": "CenterWeightedAverage", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire", "EXIF FocalLength": "43/10", "EXIF SubSecTime": "769", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "769", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "769", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "5312", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2988", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "A16LSIA00VM A16LSIE11SM", "EXIF Padding": "[]", "EXIF OffsetSchema": "4098"}