Lilly Pillys

How to choose a lilly pilly

Work from the height you want to hold, not from the photos. For low borders and pots around 1m, look at Aussie Compact and Allyn Magic. For the classic 2m to 3m privacy hedge, Lilly Pilly Resilience is the default for good reason: it reaches about 5m untrimmed, holds glossy foliage right to the ground and resists psyllid, with Backyard Bliss and Bush Christmas sitting in the same band. For tall screens of 4m and over, Goodbye Neighbours, Firescreen and the small leaved Luehmann's lilly pilly do the heavy work, while Straight and Narrow and Pinnacle hold a width of about a metre for side passages and pool fences. Where you want an actual tree, the Weeping Lilly Pilly makes a graceful 8m to 10m specimen with pendulous new growth.

The second filter is psyllid, a sap sucking insect that pimples the new leaves of older varieties in warm humid areas. It is cosmetic rather than fatal, but if you garden anywhere from Sydney north, choosing a resistant selection such as Resilience means you never think about it. If you are still weighing lilly pillys against viburnum or photinia, the full hedging and screening range lets you compare mature sizes and growth rates side by side.

Where lilly pillys thrive

These are Australian rainforest natives, so they want sun, water and reasonable soil, and they perform in every capital city. Subtropical and tropical gardens grow them fastest of all. Warm temperate coastal gardens from Sydney to Perth are ideal, with enough salt tolerance for all but front line coastal positions. In cool temperate and frost prone areas, most Syzygium australe varieties shrug off light frost once established, and the hardier Acmena types take harder frost; plant in spring so roots establish before their first winter. In hot dry inland gardens they will grow with deep regular watering and heavy mulch, but they are not a low water hedge in the way westringia is.

Spacing and planting

• Hedges to 3m: 1 plant per metre. A 10m fence line takes 10 plants, 11 with one at each end.
• Columnar forms: 60cm to 80cm apart for Straight and Narrow and Pinnacle to close into a solid narrow wall.
• Dwarf borders: 50cm apart for the compact varieties.
• Informal screens: 1.2m to 1.5m apart where you can wait a little longer for cover.

Set the row 60cm to 80cm off a fence so you can prune the back face. Dig each hole twice as wide as the pot and no deeper, water in heavily, mulch 75mm deep and water deeply twice a week through the first summer. Start tip pruning while the plants are small: a hedge clipped lightly from year one builds a dense base that a hedge left to run tall never fills in.

Care and feeding

Feed in early spring and late summer with a controlled release fertiliser, clip after each growth flush to hold your line, and deep water through dry spells. In warm climates with water behind them, the fast varieties put on up to a metre a year. Our lilly pilly care guide covers pruning timing, feeding and problem solving in more detail.

Common questions

Are lilly pilly berries edible?

Yes. The pink to red berries, riberries on Luehmann's lilly pilly, are a traditional bush food with a tart, clove like flavour that makes excellent jam. Birds will take most of them first if you let them.

Will the roots damage pipes or paving?

No. Lilly pillys are well behaved near paths, pools and plumbing, which is a large part of why they are the standard boundary hedge in new suburbs. Only the full sized tree forms need the setback you would give any 10m tree.

How fast will my hedge reach 2m?

From 200mm pots, expect real privacy in about two years and a solid 2m clipped hedge by year three in warm climates with regular water and feeding. Tubestock costs far less per plant and adds roughly a season.

Which lilly pilly suits a frosty garden?

In Canberra, inland New South Wales and Victoria, choose the Acmena based varieties or proven hardy selections like Resilience, plant in spring, mulch well and protect young plants their first winter. Avoid the softer tropical selections.

Can a full hedge order be delivered?

Yes. Everything here is delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and no minimum order. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.