English: Monga waratah; Braidwood waratah.
Region: Australia, south eastern New South Wales.
Habitat: high altitude; moist areas at the edge of rainforest, by streams in eucalyptus forests; sandy soils of alluvial origin with good drainage and ample moisture; part-shaded or sunny positions; tolerant of shade, heavier soils and cooler climates.
BotanyShrub or small tree; to 6 m high.
Leaves: narrow; green; 4 to 18 cm long, ± 1 cm wide.
Inflorescences: open, thin, wiry, flowerheads; 6 to 10 cm in diameter; composed of 28 to 65 individual small flowers, or florets; surrounded by green or pink leafy bracts ± 3 cm long, much less prominent than those of the New South Wales Waratah.
Flowers: red; encased in a perianth, which is a much brighter red on the surface facing the centre of the flower than the surface facing outwards; sessile anther, next to the stigma at the end of the style; ovary at the base of the style and atop a stalk known as the gynophore; crescent shaped nectary lies at the base of the gynophore; blooming in spring.
Fruit: woody seed pods, ± 6 cm long; split longitudinally when mature.
Pollination: by birds.
Stem: swollen woody base, lignotuber, largely under the soil, stores energy and nutrients as a resource for rapid growth after a bushfire.
Seeds: germinates and grows in post-bushfire soil; eaten and destroyed by animals; do not travel far.