Alloxylon pinnatum

Scientific name: Alloxylon pinnatum

Author: (Maiden & E. Betche) P. Weston & Crisp

Common name: Dorrigo Waratah

Family: Proteaceae

Location

The Proteaceae Woodland, Bed 107a, one level down into the rock garden below the Visitor Centre viewing deck and to the east.

A generous covering of rich pink blossoms draws attention to this warm-temperate rainforest dweller which comes, as its name suggests, from the Dorrigo area of New South Wales and is also found in the McPherson Range on both sides of the NSW/Queensland border. Between 700 and 1250m altitude, on escarpment ranges with fertile soils this 'waratah' is an uncommon species and has been listed as a Rare or Threatened Australian Plant (ROTAP) with a conservation status of 3RC. The largest of the three Dorrigo Waratahs in the Proteaceae Woodland at Mount Tomah was planted in 1989 and has flowered well in the previous three years. The two smaller specimens flowered for the first time last year. Belonging to the plant family, Proteaceae, gives this waratah membership of an ancient Gondwanan family, and qualifies it for display at Mount Tomah where we seek to interpret, though plants, the evolutionary links between the countries which once comprised the supercontinent of Gondwana. There is also the opportunity to see a rare and very handsome native plant which is not often found in cultivation.