Protea repens is known as the common sugarbush and suikerbos or opregte suikerbos (purebred sugarbush) in Afrikaans, the common names recognising the copious supplies of nectar produced by the flowerheads.
The Cape sugarbird is one of the regular local beneficiaries of this renowned fynbos delicacy. People used the nectar as a sugar substitute and as a cough remedy in olden times. They collected the nectar and boiled it into a thick syrup.
This Protea is part of the cultural heritage of people of the southern parts of South Africa, rightly remembered in song, childhood images of rural living and visits to the fynbos (Coates Palgrave, 2002).