Protea eximia (Broad-leaved Sugarbush)

Protea eximia, the Broad-leaved Sugarbush, is a shrub from South Africa that may become a small tree. It occurs in mountain fynbos on mainly mildly acidic sandy soils; the species was very well known under its old name of Protea latifolia. The flowers have awns that are covered in purple-black velvety hairs, and are contained within a series of rings of involucral bracts that have the appearance of petals. The fruit is a densely hairy nut, many of which are inserted on a woody base. The flowers are borne terminally on long shoots, and have a tendency to become very untidy as they age.