Grevillea Hybrid 'Legacy Flame'

Legacy Flame Grevillea

Botanical Name: Grevillea hybrid 'Legacy Flame'
Family: Proteaceae
Origin: Australia (cultivar selection; released to mark Legacy Australia’s centenary, 2023)
Plant Type: Evergreen shrub/groundcover

Overview

A compact, low-mounding grevillea made for South Australian gardens. ‘Legacy Flame’ carpets beds with fine, narrow green foliage and lights up the cooler months with fiery red–orange, nectar-rich blooms. Flowers are sterile (no seed mess), making it ideal for mass planting, verges, and large containers. A magnet for honeyeaters and native pollinators.

Key Features

• Mature Size: 0.4–0.6 m H × 0.8–1.2 m W
• Growth Rate: 20-40 cm per year under good conditions
• Foliage: Fine, evergreen, long narrow leaves; not prickly; new tips can bronze in cool/dry spells; dense, carpet-forming habit
• Flowers: Bright flame-like red/orange “toothbrush” clusters; autumn–winter peak, with occasional spring flush (and in containers at other times); not notably fragrant; sterile
• Seasonal Interest: Reliable year-round cover; strongest colour autumn–winter, with spot flowers in spring
• Wildlife Value: Highly attractive to nectar-feeding birds and insects/pollinators
• Tolerance: Drought-tolerant (once established), heat-tolerant, wind-tolerant, second-line coastal-tolerant; light frost (protect from hard frost)
• Planting Density: Mass planting: 1 plant per 2–3 m² for tight cover; Edges/drifts: 1 per 1–2 m
• Pet Friendly: Generally non-toxic; sap may irritate sensitive skin—discourage chewing and wear gloves when pruning

Where It Works Best

• Sunlight: Full sun to part shade (best flowering in full sun)
• Soil: Well-drained sandy or loam soils; great in large containers; avoid waterlogging; use low-phosphorus native fertiliser
• Water Needs: Establishment: 2 deep soaks/week for 8–12 weeks. Established: deep soak every 10–14 days in summer; monthly in winter if dry
• Maintenance: Mulch in spring; light tip-prune after flowering to keep dense (avoid cutting into old bare wood); feed lightly with native (low-P) fertiliser in early spring
• Lifespan: 10–20+ years
• Climate Zones: Suited to temperate and Mediterranean SA gardens, including second-line coastal areas
• Soil pH: Slightly acid to neutral (pH 5.5–7.0) preferred; avoid highly alkaline/limey soils

Landscape & Design Ideas

• Mass plant on banks and verges as living mulch and weed suppression
• Spill over retaining walls, rockeries and large pots for cascading colour
• Pair with Lomandra, Dianella, Westringia for a resilient, water-wise palette

Why You Will Love It

A set-and-forget, bird-magnet groundcover with months of red-orange bloom right when the garden needs colour most—compact, clean (seed-sterile) and built for SA heat and wind.