Protea coronata Lam.

Erect shrub usually 2-3 m tall, eventually becoming a sparsely branched tree 4-5 m tall, with a single main trunk. Stems very densely villous, 5-8 mm in diam. Leaves ascending, narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, acute, 60-90 mm long, 8-28 mm broad, sessile to subcordate at base; green and sparsely villous, becoming glabrescent; or occasionally silvery-sericeous. Inflorescences oblong, 90-100 mm long, 50-60 mm in diam. Involucral receptacle distinctly concave and sunken, 25-35 mm in diam., 5 mm deep. Involucral bracts 4-5 seriate, pale green, glabrous to glabrescent (occasionally very sparsely sericeous); outer series ovate, 15-20 mm long, 15 mm wide, the apices prolonged into 50-100 mm long foliaceous appendages, bases of outermost series completely fused; inner series oblong to broadly oblong, 60-70 mm long, 10-20 mm broad, obtuse; innermost series very prominently spathulate, apices rounded, strongly incurved and concave, apical margins sericeously bearded. Perianth straight, 70-90 mm long, tube and claws imperceptibly merged, 40-45 mm long, ridged, glabrous but becoming very sparsely villous distally and inflated; junction with limbs marked by prominent internal protuberances; limbs linear subulate, 30-40 mm long, lanate-arachnoid, prominently awned. Style straight, terete, glabrous, 60-65 mm long. Pollen presenter filiform, 10 mm long, straight. Anthers 4, linear-filiform, with distinct 5 mm long filaments. Ovary obconic, 2 mm long, covered with straight 15 mm long pale golden trichomes. Hypogynous scales ovate-acute, fleshy, 2 mm long. Flowering takes place mainly during late autumn and winter, particularly from May to July, but may commence as early as April and continue until September.