Large Christmas bell
Blandfordia grandiflora
A member of the lily family, Blandfordia grandiflora is a perennial native to south-east Australia. It flowers mainly in late December, giving its common name the large Christmas bell. It has bright red and yellow tipped clusters of flowers and is a small genus of four species all confined to south-eastern Australia.
Blandfordia are slow-growing, grass-like plants with narrow leaves and bell-shaped flowers produced on stems arising from the centre of the clump.
Most of the flowers are red with yellow tips, although all-yellow flowers sometimes appear as well. The flowers grow in clusters of three to nine, and are about 5 cm in length.
The species was named after the Marquis of Blandford, by the botanist and collector, Sir James Edward Smith in 1804. Smith was a friend of Kew’s first Director, Sir Joseph Banks, and founder of the Linnean Society, which is the world’s oldest active biological society.
In the wild the species is classed as Endangered by the Queensland Government. Help the Millennium Seed Bank safeguard this seed collection by adopting a seed as a unique gift for family and friends.
Large Christmas bell
More facts:
- Of the 7,811 native plant species in the Queensland state, some 13% are rare or threatened, 23 plant species are classified as Extinct in the wild, 151 species are Endangered
- Grows in the coastal areas of central and northern New South Wales and south-east Queensland
- Bring some Christmas joy by adopting a seed as a gift for your family and friends.