Climbing Guinea Flower

~ Hibbertia scandens ~

DILLENIACEAE

The Guinea Flower, also known as Snake Vine, is another fine friend to our favourite native insects. This bright-yellow flower requires buzz-pollination, something our native bees have evolved to excel at, especially the Blue-banded Bee (Amegilla cingulata), the Great Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa aruana) and the adorable Teddy Bear Bee (Amegilla bombiformis). The pollinating process requires the bee to vibrate at such a speed (creating a harmonic pitch) that it shakes the pollen from the tight grip of the anthers. This is a special skill, and one that European honeybees (Apis mellifera) do not possess. So, planting wildflowers that require buzz-pollination, such as the Guinea Flower, Blue Tinsel Lily (see p. 15) and Common Fringe Lily (see p. 13), is a great way to provide protein-rich pollen food for our cruisy native bees.

WHERE TO LOOK

The Climbing Guinea Flower is widespread along the country’s east side from southern New South Wales to north-east Queensland around Cape Tribulation. It can be found sprawled out along sand dunes and through open forests as well as climbing along the edges of rainforests.

Locations → Queensland: K’gari (Fraser Island) and Banksia Beach and Woorim at Bribie Island; NSW: Moonee Beach, Coffs Harbour, Bald Rock National Park and Royal National Park.

FEATURES

This climbing and scrambling shrub has many long fleshy arms reaching up to 4m. Its leaves are egg shaped and around 3–9cm long with a silky hairy underside. Its flowers are very similar in appearance to the Yellow Kapok Tree (see p. 115), although they’re not related – the flowers are 2–6cm wide, featuring five rounded petals and a central cluster of stamens. Weirdly enough, they’re known to emit a foul fragrance and their seeds produce a strong burning sensation if eaten. These kidney-shaped, brown-red seeds are held within a leathery pod that opens at the top and disperses when ripe.

FLOWERING SEASON

Spring and summer → This perennial can be seen flowering most of the year, peaking from September to December.

TRADITIONAL USES

This vine has many uses including a topical anti-inflammatory paste made from the leaves and stems, which is warmed and then mashed. The sap also contains antimicrobial properties.

PLANTING

The Guinea Flower enjoys full sun to part shade in sandy soils. Seeds need a pre-treatment of either fire or soaking in boiling water to weaken the seed coating. Seeds and plants are widely available online and in specialty nurseries. Propagation from cuttings of the long vines is a great way to produce the same plant without having to pre-treat seeds.