A vibrant bouquet of King Protea (Protea cynaroides) flowers, which is the iconic national flower of South Africa. These unique, prehistoric-looking blooms feature a large, dome-like central head filled with hundreds of tiny true flowers, completely surrounded by a crown of stiff, colorful, petal-like leaves called bracts. They are highly prized around the world as dramatic focal points in fresh and dried floral arrangements.
King Proteas have several colour forms and horticulturists have recognised 81 garden varieties, some of which have injudiciously been planted in their natural range, threatening the native blooms. In some varieties the pink of the flower and red borders of leaves are replaced by a creamy yellow.
This unusual flower has a long vase life in flower arrangements, and makes for an excellent dried flower. Protea cynaroides is adapted to survive wildfires by its thick underground stem, which contains many dormant buds; these will produce the new growth after the fire.
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