Can you show us some of the leaves and more of the whole plant. There are a couple of flowers that look similar but we need more to be able to tell for sure.
I took the photo at the San Francisco Zoo, so I think it is pretty exotic. I just walked by, noticed the flower, took the picture... in just a few seconds. Sorry, no leaf details. It is a tall shrub or small tree. The flower was about 5 feet off the ground and there were some higher. I took the picture and when I saw it on my computer, was really captivated by the color, shape, and clarity of the picture.
I've never seen a Protea in real life. We get them at the florists as cut flowers and they last for a very long time. They also dry well and can keep for ages.
Here is a photo of a beauty that I took at the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall last summer. Protea ( photo / image / picture from Gardengirl's Garden )
I was thinking it was a cactus bloom of some sort, so the picture with leaves wouldn't have helped me a bit afterall. Glad Droopy and Gardengirl were able to ID it.
