Distinctive red color of young (compound) leaf and the distinctive winged rachis.
Australian botanists have their lingo for members of the Proteaceae. They call them Prots. And any botanist who says that Prots are an easy group is either an incarnated Prot themselves or a genius. With this as an antecedent, I must say however, that Gevuina bleasdalei is probably the easiest Prot to identify in the field, at least if one can get a good view of the leaves. Firstly, the leaves are compound, alternately arranged and possesses toothed leaflets and a distinctively winged rachis. Moreover, the common names Blush Silky Oak and Wingleaf Silky Oak says it all. This rainforest tree is a compulsive blusher! Like most Prots, the leaves are alternately arranged and in this species the young leaf growth is a deep brown red and extremely distinctive and ornamental. The leaves also can be recognized instantly. They are compound with toothed leaflets and the rachis is distinctively winged.
“Blushing” new leaves
Flowers
The genus Gevuina is an interesting one both biogeographically and ethnobotanically. G. bleasdalei is endemic to Australia and it has a relative known as the Chilean Hazel (Gevuina avellana) of South America, which is the source of edible Gevuina nuts, a little known Proteaceous goodie which has languished in the shadow of the macadamia. The name Gevuina was in fact based on an approximation of the Mapuche word ‘Guevin’ for the species. Could our Queensland species also have edible nuts? That would be interesting to find out.
Leaf Whispering in the Tropics 