The leaves of Protea neriifolia, the baardsuikerbos in Afrikaans (bearded sugar bush), resemble those of the oleander, Nerium oleander. This feature was captured in the plant’s specific name. The plant is a spreading shrub of 1 m to 2 m in height (SA Tree List No. 93.1).
The conspicuously hairy tips of the inner bracts of the flowerhead brought about the reference to beard in the common name. The name sugar bush comes from the copious supply of nectar produced in these (and other protea) flowers; the plant’s value proposition in pollination bartering with birds and insects.
The species distribution is in the south of the Western Cape and the southwest of the Eastern Cape.
The habitat is fynbos slopes and flats on clay and sandstone, often gravelly soil. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Manning, 2007; Coates Palgrave, 2002; www.plantzafrica.com; http://redlist.sanbi.org).