The floral emblem

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Cook Orchid

The Cooktown orchid was proclaimed Queensland's floral emblem in 1959 during celebrations to mark the State's centenary.

This distinctive native flower had long been popularly regarded as the State's unofficial floral emblem and this was confirmed in a government-sponsored, newspaper public opinion poll taken in the centenary year.

The State Parliament endorsed the popular choice in the Badge, Arms, Floral and other Emblems of Queensland Act 1959-1981.

The Cooktown orchid (Dendrobium bigibbum) is native to Queensland's northern tropics. It grows on trees and rocks in well-watered areas of Cape York Peninsula.

Each plant flowers for up to six weeks in autumn and winter. Individual flowers reach about four centimetres across. They are usually all-purple in colour although plants with white or white spotted flowers have been found.

The Cooktown orchid is relatively easy to cultivate as a garden specimen in frost-free areas of coastal Queensland. It needs a well-drained, sunny position, protected from winter winds. A bed of loose charcoal or bark is a suitable growing medium. It can also be cultivated on the trunks or branches of trees.

Queensland emblems

The floral emblem