Grevillea 'Superb' is a widely grown grevillea

Grevillea

Grevillea is a diverse genus of about 360 species of evergreen flowering plants in the protea family Proteaceae, native to Australia, New Guinea, New Caledonia, and Sulawesi. It was named in honour of Charles Francis Greville. The species range from prostrate shrubs less than 0.5 m tall to trees...

 cultivar

Cultivar

A cultivar'Cultivar has two meanings as explained under Formal definition. When used in reference to a taxon, the word does not apply to an individual plant but to all those plants sharing the unique characteristics that define the cultivar. is a plant or group of plants selected for desirable...

 bred by Merv Hodge in Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

. It is a hybrid of a white-flowered Grevillea banksii

Grevillea banksii

Grevillea banksii, known by various common names including Red silky oak, Dwarf silky oak, Banks' grevillea, Byfield waratah and, in Hawaii, Kahili flower or Kahili tree is a plant of the large genus Grevillea in the diverse family Proteaceae...

, from Queensland, and the Western Australian plant G. bipinnatifida

Grevillea bipinnatifida

Grevillea bipinnatifida, also known as Fuchsia Grevillea, is a shrub which is endemic to Western Australia.-Description:This species forms a spreading shrub which grows up to 1 m in height...

.

Description

A compact shrub growing to 1-2 metres high and wide with attractive green lobed leaves (similar to the cultivar 'Robyn Gordon'

Grevillea 'Robyn Gordon'

Robyn Gordon is also a driver in All-American Girl Racing.Grevillea 'Robyn Gordon is a very popular grevillea cultivar which has been planted widely in Australia and other countries....

), its main horticultural feature is its flowering for 12 months of the year in warmer climates, such as Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

 and Queensland. The inflorescence

Inflorescence

An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...

s are around 15 cm long by 9 cm wide and contain shades of orange, red and yellow.

Cultivation

It has been very popular in Australian gardens since the 1990s, and widely planted in public spaces as well, though now there is an interest in ever smaller garden plants. The plant produces nectar and attracts both birds and bees. It likes a sunny, well drained position, will tolerate moderate frosts and grows well in a tub. Avoid using fertilisers that are high in phosphorus.

Grevilleas, including this cultivar, can be pruned by up to one third in early spring. This cultivar can be propagated fairly easily from cuttings.

Toxicology

Along with a number of other grevilleas, this cultivar may cause allergic contact dermatitis

Contact dermatitis

Contact dermatitis is a term for a skin reaction resulting from exposure to allergens or irritants . Phototoxic dermatitis occurs when the allergen or irritant is activated by sunlight....

 for certain individuals who come into contact with it.

In the Public Eye

In 2003, Australia Post

Australia Post

Australia Post is the trading name of the Australian Government-owned Australian Postal Corporation .-History:...

 issued a 50c stamp

Postage stamps and postal history of Australia

This is an overview of the postage stamps and postal history of Australia.- Postal history :The six self-governing Australian colonies that formed the Commonwealth of Australia on 1 January 1901 operated their own postal service and issued their own stamps – see articles on the systems on New South...

depicting the cultivar.