Kingdom Plantae Family Proteaceae Genus Hakea | Order Proteales Subfamily Grevilleoideae Rank Species | |
Similar Hakea macraeana, Hakea cristata, Hakea myrtoides, Hakea pandanicarpa, Hakea propinqua | ||
Hakea nitida, commonly called the Frog hakea or Shining hakea, is a shrub of the genus Hakea native to an area in the southern Wheatbelt, Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia.
The erect non-lignotuberous shrub typically grows to a height of 1 to 3 metres (3.3 to 9.8 ft). It blooms from July to September and produces white-cream and yellow flowers.
The plant has glabrous branchlets that are not glaucous. The flat rigid leaves are subpetiolate with a narrowly elliptic to obovate shape. Leaves are 1.5 to 9 centimetres (0.6 to 3.5 in) in length and 10 to 30 millimetres (0.4 to 1.2 in) wide and narrowly cuneate.
Inflorescences are axillary or terminal on short shoots with 16 to 36 flowers. These form obliquely ovate fruit, 2.5 to 3.5 centimetres (1.0 to 1.4 in) long and 1.5 to 2.5 centimetres (0.6 to 1.0 in) wide. The fruit are black-pusticulate, with horns approximately 6 millimetres (0.24 in) long. Seeds are narrowly obovate with wings broadly down one side of seed body, narrowly down other.
The seed pods resemble warty toads or frogs giving the plant the unusual common name, the Frog Hakea.