Bottlebrush vegetation are beautiful and showy evergreens that add an enormous burst of shade in spring and summer time. Originating in Australia, these engaging vegetation have made fairly a reputation for themselves in tropical and subtropical areas with their flamboyant flower spikes and fragrant foliage.
Their flower spikes seem in shades of pink, purple, white, yellow, and inexperienced, in addition to their most acknowledged shade, pink. Whereas most varieties develop greatest in zones 9/11, I’ve a couple of extra cold-tolerant varieties to introduce you to as effectively. For these gardeners in zones 7-8, a number of species will overwinter properly in your climates as effectively.
Beforehand, most cultivars belonged to the genus Callistemon. Lately, they’ve been shifted into the genus Melaleuca. Many individuals and retailers nonetheless use the previous title, so we now have included each right here. Listed below are 27 of my favourite styles of bottlebrush vegetation for the backyard and panorama.
Albany Bottlebrush
We would as effectively begin the listing with a bang, and Albany is the right species for the job. With its upright, branching progress behavior, this bottlebrush makes a superb hedge or display. The foliage is gorgeous and fragrant. The leaves are celadon-colored, lengthy and slim, with a rounded tip with an nearly succulent high quality.
Albany Bottlebrush is a compact selection, reaching about 8’ tall at maturity and never fairly as vast. The flower spikes are giant, about 3” vast and 6” lengthy. Lengthy clusters of vermillion stamens look frivolously tipped with yellow pollen. In case you are a hen watcher, it is a nice plant for drawing birds to the backyard.
Alpine Bottlebrush
Alpine will remind you of a true evergreen shrub, which all bottlebrush vegetation are! The leaves are wonderful and nearly needle-like and frivolously pubescent. This species makes a fantastic shrub with a low floor clearance and dense foliage. Encourage extra branching by frivolously pruning branches when the plant is younger.
One of many promoting factors of the Alpine bottlebrush is that it’s exceptionally cold-tolerant for the genus. Whereas most bottlebrush vegetation are chilly hardy to zone 9 or 8 on the most, Alpine can deal with winters in zone 7 and tolerates boggy soil varieties.
The flower spikes are lengthy with clusters of creamy white to yellow stamens. After the flowers fall, the ensuing seed pods resemble pinecones, including to the evergreen enchantment.
Bracelet Honey Myrtle
If you would like a flexible and huge bottlebrush plant with a prolific flowering behavior, bracelet honey myrtle checks all of the containers. In its native Australia, it is a fashionable and customary plant typically grown as a tree or giant shrub. It makes a fantastic display; it’s fairly hardy and grows rapidly. As a tree, it has a slight weeping behavior.
The foliage is tender, delicate, and needle-like. Bracelet honey myrtle produces lengthy, slim flower spikes with dense clusters of snow-white stamens with white pollen ideas. This selection grows quickly, gaining as much as 3’ of recent top per yr. This progress tendency makes it a fantastic display because it fills in rapidly to offer privateness.
Broad-leaved Paperbark
The broad-leaved paperbark tree has some distinctive traits. It’s a lot bigger than most bottlebrush vegetation and grows effectively as a small to medium-sized tree.
It usually reaches about 30’ tall however has sometimes grown to 50’ tall. Essentially the most distinctive attribute of the tree is its white, papery bark with an decorative, peeling behavior.
The leaves are ovate and easy and have a cool blue tint. The tree is just not as densely flowering as many cultivars, but it surely flowers for an prolonged interval, from spring via fall, and may produce blooms yr spherical. The flower spikes are white and seem in clusters on the finish of branches.
‘Captain Prepare dinner’
This reasonably shrubby selection stays a really manageable dimension, reaching solely about 5’ tall and vast. A grouping of ‘Captain Prepare dinner’ vegetation makes a really good low hedge or display with dense branches and a slight weeping behavior.
You’ll be able to practice it right into a small tree, however the clearance is usually solely a foot or two from the bottom, even while you trim the underside branches away. Eradicating greater than that can depart a sad-looking plant that lacks density.
The leaves are small and slim however densely organized on branches, which may be inspired with early pruning. This good, compact selection matches effectively into smaller areas. The flower spikes are full-sized at about 6” lengthy and lined in unfastened clusters of vibrant pink stamens. The stamens have a lightweight brushing of yellow on the ideas.
Cliff Bottlebrush
Cliff bottlebrush is probably the most used species for making a bottlebrush bonsai. It matures to about 5-10’ tall and vast at full dimension, making it a pleasant, giant shrub. The leaves are slim and elliptical, and when the foliage is younger, it seems to have a copper hue earlier than maturing to a beautiful jade tone.
The scale of this cultivar makes it a pleasant container plant, and it has reasonably good frost tolerance. The flower spikes are compact at 4” lengthy and have lengthy, unfastened clusters of pink stamens with yellow ideas. The flowers are frivolously aromatic.
Firebark
Firebark is a paperbark species with peeling bark in shades of white, gray, brown, or cream. One of many bigger species, Melaleuca nervosa has many makes use of. Relying on the variability, the tree can attain heights of as much as 50’ tall, with leaves starting from one to 6 inches lengthy.
This massive bottlebrush tree wants some house. Along with its distinctive peeling bark, its flowers are additionally unusual among the many bottlebrush household. The mid-sized flower spikes vary from a pale yellow to a vibrant inexperienced. The leaves are gray-green. Effective, white hairs cowl new progress.
Gold-Tipped Bottlebrush
This midsized selection makes an exquisite privateness hedge. At a mature top of 10’ with a diffusion of about 8’, the dense foliage of gold-tipped bottlebrush flowers from winter via summer time and infrequently year-round. The spherical progress behavior requires little shaping besides deadheading to encourage new branching and blooming.
The flower spikes this cultivar produces are quick (3”) and made up of clusters of quick pink stamens with golden pollen ideas. The foliage is gray-green and made up of slim ovate to lanceolate leaves.
Inexperienced Bottlebrush
Inexperienced bottlebrush falls into the class of bottlebrush vegetation with higher chilly hardiness. Gardeners as far north as zone 7 can develop this species open air with no risk of frost harm. The Tasmanian native has foliage that resembles an olive tree and vibrant inexperienced stems.
This additional sturdy species is greatest identified for its flower spikes, lined in dense clusters of lime inexperienced stamens with yellow ideas. It makes a fantastic shrub for these in cooler climates however may thrive in scorching climate.
Kingaroy Bottlebrush
One other light-flowered selection, ‘Kingaroy’ is a superb, giant, shrubby selection with slim leaves organized in an reverse spiraling formation. This foliage is barely furry and rose pink when it’s younger and ages to a deeper inexperienced. The leaves are lanceolate, narrower than most species, and pointed reasonably than rounded.
‘Kingaroy’ makes an exquisite tall hedge reaching practically 20’ tall with a 12’ unfold at maturity. It may be skilled right into a small tree as effectively. The flower spikes are giant with clusters of cream-colored, gold-tipped stamens.
Lemon Bottlebrush
The upright progress behavior and lengthy blooming season are engaging traits of the lemon bottlebrush. It makes a superb giant shrub or tree with dense, colourful foliage that’s silvery when younger and tender and which takes on a vibrant inexperienced hue in maturity.
The lemon bottlebrush’s flower spikes are mid-sized and upward-pointing. Its clusters of stamens are dense and lengthy, and the spikes are typically as vast as they’re lengthy. The stamens are normally yellow with gold ideas however can typically seem pale pink.
Lesser Bottlebrush
Lesser doesn’t fairly appear the appropriate title for this selection, however the botanical title phoenicia refers back to the deep red-violet tone of the flower spikes on this gorgeous plant. These deep scarlet blooms are one of many darkest reds of the bottlebrushes. The clusters of stamens this plant produces are dense, with a mean of 34-39 stamens per flower, spectacular!
The lesser bottlebrush has a barely weeping progress behavior. Its flower spikes cling downward and are surrounded by engaging leaves. The leaves are lengthy, skinny, and lanceolate and look similar to the weeping bottlebrush.
Lime Bottlebrush
Lime bottlebrush is one other native of Tasmania, one in every of six species. It’s a small to medium species with a shrubby behavior and leathery lanceolate leaves. The leaves are lengthy and infrequently curved.
This selection reaches about 10′ at maturity, making it an exquisite privateness hedge candidate. The flower spikes are small, occurring on the ends of branches, which proceed to develop after they bloom. Clusters of cream-colored to lime-green stamens have yellow ideas and happen in teams of 19 to 36 per flower.
‘Little John’
‘Little John’ is a really flashy and engaging dwarf number of the viminalis species. It’s gradual rising with a ultimate dimension of three′ tall with a 5′ unfold. It has a phenomenal densely branched progress behavior, which makes it a beautiful border or small backyard point of interest.
The range has not solely dense branches however leaves as effectively. The blue-green leaves are organized in a unfastened rosette and are lengthy and ovate. The flower clusters are vibrant, crimson, and huge in comparison with the dimensions of the plant. ‘Little John’ makes up for its small dimension with an enormous persona.
‘Mauve Mist’
The right bottlebrush may be ‘Mauve Mist.’ With a top and unfold between six and 12′, it makes an ideal hedge windbreak or privateness display. Early pruning will assist give this swish shrub a denser look by encouraging branching.
This selection has really beautiful flower spikes. The lengthy clusters seem on the finish of arching branches and are 4 inches or longer. Dense clusters of pinkish-purple stamens are frivolously tipped with gold.
Slim-Leaved Bottlebrush
One other winner of the Award of Backyard Advantage from the Royal Horticultural Society, the narrow-leaved bottlebrush is a small to medium-sized shrub with slim and delicate fragrant leaves on frivolously weeping branches. It may be skilled right into a small tree, which showcases the weeping behavior and makes for a swish plant.
The fragile inexperienced foliage is an excellent praise to the scarlet flower spikes. These spikes are 4” lengthy with dense clusters of the brightest pink stamens with deep pink ideas. This species prefers a bit extra moisture and tolerates moist soil higher.
Needle Bottlebrush
Needle bottlebrush takes its title from its leaves, that are very lengthy and skinny with pointed ends. The foliage resembles stunning pine bushes and is fragrant when crushed. As with most species, early pruning will encourage branching to offer this shrub a denser look.
With a ultimate top of round 8’ and a diffusion of 12’, the needle bottlebrush makes an exquisite shrub. The flower spikes happen a couple of inches earlier than the top of every department, showcasing dense clusters of lengthy, pink stamens with yellow ideas.
‘Perth Pink’
‘Perth Pink’ is a shut relative of ‘Mauve Mist’ and has a really comparable enchantment. It makes an ideal low hedge with a ultimate top and unfold of 5′. It makes it a superb point of interest within the backyard as effectively.
The foliage is lime inexperienced, slim, and lanceolate. This selection blooms prolifically in spring, displaying off plenty of bubblegum pink clusters of stamens on 4 to 5-inch flower spikes. This selection is a warmth lover and never cold-tolerant.
Prickly Bottlebrush
Straightforward to develop with flashy flowers and a ultimate dimension of 12′ tall with a 12′ unfold, the prickly bottlebrush is straightforward to develop and fairly fashionable. Named for its needle-like, stiff, pointed leaves, this species has a slight weeping behavior.
Prickly bottlebrush has very flashy flower spikes. Though not lengthy, the dense clusters of stamens are good pink with giant quantities of vibrant yellow pollen on the ideas. This can be a extremely decorative and low-maintenance cultivar.
Scarlet Bottlebrush
Scarlet bottlebrush has an upright progress behavior topping out round 20′, which makes it excellent to coach right into a small tree. The branches have an open behavior, making this species much less fascinating as a privateness display.
That is one other species with a real evergreen really feel. The quick, stiff, pointed leaves resemble a pine and develop outward towards the ideas of branches. The flower spikes are mid-sized, with very dense clusters of crimson stamens which have a lightweight sprinkling of yellow pollen on the ideas.
‘Splendens’
‘Splendens’ is an award-winning, versatile shrub or small tree. The Award of Backyard Advantage from the Royal Horticultural Society ensures that this cultivar will carry out effectively and draw admiration so long as it will get the right care.
It may be grown as a small to medium shrub or skilled as a small tree, as it would develop as much as 25’ tall this manner, but it surely can be skilled to stay smaller, as a shrub of 5-15’ tall and vast.
The foliage is available in coppery earlier than turning gray-green. The leaves are small and ovate and have a lemony scent when bruised. The flower spikes are giant and have dense clusters of yellow-tipped, scarlet stamens.
Stiff Bottlebrush
Stiff bottlebrush is a medium-sized species. It could actually simply be skilled to be a small tree or stored to a extra manageable 10′ tall and vast as a big shrub.
It may be stored as a root hardy perennial shrub in cooler climates, rising 3-5’ in a season. This selection may be very tolerant of salt and makes a fantastic coastal shrub.
The species tends to have an upright progress behavior with only a slight little bit of weeping towards the top of the branches, extra so when flowers are current. The flower spikes are quick and vast, with dense clusters of lengthy, vibrant pink stamens with only a contact of yellow on the ideas.
‘Violaceus’
‘Violaceous’ is a really decorative selection that makes an exquisite addition to a container backyard. It has a little bit of a leggy, skinny progress behavior within the first yr or two. Thankfully, it matures into a beautiful multi-trunk tree with a rounded cover.
This can be a winter-blooming selection that’s usually completed blooming by summertime. The flower spikes are lengthy and lined in densely clustered fuchsia stamens. If you happen to love pink flowers, it is a attractive specimen when it matures.
Weeping Bottlebrush
This may be my favourite bottlebrush. Once you see it, I believe you’ll perceive why. It resembles a compact weeping prepared in all the most effective methods. It has a swish progress behavior and a diffusion practically as vast because the tree is tall.
The foliage is paying homage to a willow as effectively. They’re small and ovate with tops in shiny vibrant inexperienced and a extra matte again with a grey-green tint. The lengthy, elegant weeping branches are effectively balanced, making this a phenomenal, shapely tree.
The flowers are the icing on the cake. Brilliant pink flower spikes happen simply earlier than the ends of branches. When this tree is in bloom and abuzz with pollinators, it’s a sight for sore eyes.
‘White Anzac’
‘White Anzac’ is a low-growing, dependable bloomer. It makes a sexy, sprawling hedge with a mature top of 4’ and a diffusion of as much as 12’.
Like most cultivars, this one can tolerate a spread of soil varieties and is tolerant of coastal and concrete circumstances. It is usually extra tolerant of partial shade than most bottlebrush vegetation.
The leaves are narrowly ovate and bluish-green, with ends that aren’t fairly rounded however not pointed both. The flower spikes are vital, from 4-6” lengthy, and lined in dense clusters of white stamens with yellow ideas giving them a heat high quality.
White Bottlebrush
This species will draw loads of wildlife to the backyard, together with butterflies, bees, and plenty of birds. It has an upright progress behavior and is of course shrubby however may be skilled right into a small tree with a mature top of as much as 25’.
A winner of the Award of Backyard Advantage from the Royal Horticultural Society speaks for the plant’s worth as a decorative. White bottlebrush has an in depth spreading root system, so it shouldn’t be planted inside 30’ of your private home’s basis or every other paving.
The tree has white, papery bark and slim, lanceolate leaves. Because the title implies, the flowers are white, with delicate clusters of stamens.
‘Woodlander’s Hardy’
If you happen to’re residing in zones 7-8, this species will overwinter exceptionally effectively in your cooler local weather. ‘Woodlander’s Hardy’ can survive temperatures all the way down to and typically exceeding 10°F. It’s a smaller selection, with a top and unfold of solely 3’-5’ at maturity. This makes it an exquisite point of interest, small background, or foundational plant within the backyard.
‘Woodlander’s Hardy’ has evergreen foliage that’s delicate and practically needle-like. It’s a large bloomer, starting in late spring and lasting via the summer time. The flower spikes are lengthy and slender, with unfastened clusters of wonderful pink stamens frivolously tipped with yellow pollen.
Ultimate Ideas
Bottlebrush vegetation add shade, texture, and curiosity to the backyard. Their copious nectar provide additionally serves as a beneficial pollinator meals supply, and birds love their seeds within the fall.
You’ll be able to’t go incorrect including this enjoyable and distinctive plant to your panorama. With their versatility and tolerance to soil varieties and circumstances, bottlebrush vegetation are sturdy, low-maintenance, flowering evergreens.
