Click image to enlarge
Verticordia roei subsp. roei - Feather Flower
Despite being white or cream in color, Verticordia roei subsp. roei is a very striking feather flower due to the coffee-table sized slabs of flowers. This species only just reaches the Esperance district (more common further west) and is found in the mallee region to the NW of the town, where it can be encountered on gravel soils. A similar looking species V. inclusa is more common around Esperance, but is more slender and has slightly smaller flowers with the stamens and small style largely hidden within them. With V. roei subsp. roei the stamens and style extend well beyond the petals.
There were two other Verticordia species growing with this feather flower to produce impressive displays (shown above), the pink was V. picta and the yellow V. chrysantha. Verticordia roei subsp. roei grows to over a metre (4') in height and the flowers can spread in an unbroken horizontal platform for over 75 cm (2'6") diameter. Flowering is recorded from September to December, although locally it is more likely a month later.
