The majestic looking King Protea is the national flower of South Africa. It belongs to the ancient Proteaceae family which grew in supercontinent Gondwana about 100 million years ago alongside dinosaurs. The Protea family is diverse in shape, size and colour. Its name comes from Proteus, the ancient Greek shift-shaping sea God who could change his form at will.
Protea is also known as sugar bushes due to their sweet nectar by early Dutch settlers in the Cape.The majestic King Protea is a resilient ancient survivor. Protea symbolises courage, diversity and resilience.
Did you know it is not one single flower but this beautiful flower is actually a composite head (an inflorescence) made up of hundreds or individual, small, tubular flowers clustered together. The colourful “petals” are actually modified leaves called bracts which surround and protect the inner flower mass.
The King Protea is a fire-adapted flower. Its woody stem helps it to survive wildfires, and the heat from fire triggers its hard, seed-filled cones to open and release seeds into the nutrient-rich ash.
Besides attracting the bees, there are pollinators like sunbirds, rodents and bats. The large, sturdy flower head is a perfect landing platform for birds, offering abundant nectar.
It is known as “King” because it produces the largest flower head in the Protea genus. It can grow up to 30 cm across (the size of a plate).
雄伟壮观的国王 protea 是南非的国花。它属于古老的 proteaceae 科，约 1 亿年前在恐龙共存的超级大陆冈瓦纳生长。该科植物形态、尺寸和色彩丰富多样。其名称源自希腊神话中能随意变形的海神普罗透斯。
因甜如蜜露的花蜜，开普敦的早期荷兰定居者将 Protea 称为“糖灌木”。雄伟的帝王花 是坚韧不拔的古老幸存者。它象征着勇气、多样性与坚韧性。
你知道吗，这朵美丽的花朵并非单一花朵，而是由数百朵细小的管状花朵簇聚而成的复合花序（花序）。那些色彩缤纷的“花瓣”实则为特化的叶片——苞片，它们包裹并保护着内部的花簇。
帝王花是一种适应火灾的花卉。其木质茎干能帮助它抵御野火，而火源的热量会促使坚硬的种子锥体裂开，将种子释放到富含养分的灰烬中。
除了吸引蜜蜂外，还有太阳鸟、啮齿动物和蝙蝠等传粉者。这个硕大结实的花序是鸟类理想的着陆平台，提供了丰富的花蜜。
它被誉为“帝王”，因为其在普洛提亚属中能产生最大的花序。其花序直径可达30厘米相当于一个盘子的大小）。
感谢白度翻译
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