Nuytsia floribunda

Nuytsia floribunda (Christmas Tree, Western Australian Christmas Tree, or Fire Tree ) is a species of flowering tree in the Loranthaceae family. The species is endemic to Australia from the Esperance Plain to the Geraldton Sandplains. Its common name, the Christmas tree refers to its bright orange flowers, which bloom during the Christmas season.

Description
It is a tree reaching up to 10 m (33 ft) high, or sometimes as a shrub. Its bark is rough and colored grey-brown. The flowers are a vivid yellow-orange color, which bloom between October and January. The fruit is a dry nut that has three leathery wings. It is a root hemiparasite, that though it has photosynthesis and create food on its own, it obtains most of its minerals and water from other plants. The haustoria arising from the roots of this tree attach themselves to plants within 150 m (500 ft) of itself. In natural settings, the christmas tree withdraws relatively little from each of its hosts, but it is attached to so many plants that the benefit to it is very considerable.

Taxonomy
N. floribunda is the only member of its genus, Nuytsia. The first description of this tree was published by Jacques Labillardière in Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen as a species of Loranthus. The botanist, Robert Brown published a remark of this species in 1831, giving it a new genus name with no formal description. The description was published by George Don using Brown's name, Nuytsia, which was named after Dutch explorer and colonial official, Pieter Nuyts.

Cultivation
Nuytsia floribunda is sometimes cultivated. The seeds germinate readily, and the seedlings are easy to grow for 1-2 years. When the cultivated plant reaches maturity, it becomes more difficult, with little success out of its native habitat.

Nyungar usage
The Nyungar people use this species during Kambarang, occuring sometime between October and December, obtaining bark to use for shields. The gum that exudes from the wound is collected later. It is sweet and eaten raw.