Hakea collina

Hakea collina is a shrub in the Proteaceae native to eastern Australia. A small many branched shrub with gnarled branches with attractive cream-yellowish flowers.

Description
Hakea collina is an intricately branched often gnarled shrub growing to 1 to 2.6 m high. Smaller branches and leaves have fine flattened silky hairs that remain until flowering. Straight needle-like leaves are crowded at the branch ends 1.5 to 3.5 cm long and 1.2 to 1.7 mm wide, sometimes grooved on the lower side. The inflorescence has two to twelve flowers with a white perianth 2.7 to 4.5 mm long and the style is about 9 mm long. The pedicel is 2.5-5 mm long and covered with soft white hairs extending onto the lower part of the flower. The egg-shaped fruit are finely wrinkled, narrower at the stem 14 to 18 mm long and 6.5 to 8.5 mm wide. Fruit taper to a short pointed tip 2-4 mm long with no beak. The seeds are 11 to 14 mm long with a wing that is on one side. Flowers in the colder months from May to July.

Taxonomy
Hakea collina was first formally described by the botanist Cyril Tenison White in 1944 as part of the work Contributions to the Queensland Flora as published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland. The specific epithet (collina) is derived from the Latin word collinus meaning "of a hill" or "hilly", referring to the habitat where the shrub occurs.

Distribution
It is endemic to an area in the south west of Queensland on lateritic tableland on hills and plains as a part of open Acacia woodland and shrubland communities.

Conservation status
Hakea collina was classified as 'Poorly Known' in J.D.Briggs & J.H.Leigh, "Rare or Threatened Australian Plants" (1995).