Melaleucas

How to choose a melaleuca

Size first. The honey myrtles hold the small end: Thyme Leafed Melaleuca and 'Mini Quini' stay around knee height, while 'Claret Tops' sits at 1.5m to 2m and clips into a dense hedge with deep red new growth. 'Revolution Gold' brings golden foliage at 4m to 6m. At the top end are the paperbarks, spreading trees of 8m and more with cream trunks that peel in soft papery layers. Flowers come second: every variety carries brush style blooms heavy with nectar, in white, cream, pink or red depending on the selection.

Where melaleucas work in Australian gardens

Almost anywhere, which is why councils plant so many. Melaleucas handle coastal salt spray, poor sandy soil and drought once established, and the paperbarks are one of the few trees that tolerate genuinely wet ground, so they suit low spots and boggy corners where most trees drown. The majority also take light frost, making them reliable from subtropical Queensland through Sydney, Adelaide and Perth into cooler inland gardens. Use the compact forms as native borders and low hedges, the mid sized varieties for informal screens alongside the rest of our hedging and screening range, and the paperbarks as bird attracting feature trees among other Australian native plants.

Planting and care

Dig the hole twice the width of the pot and no deeper, water in heavily, and mulch 75mm deep with the mulch kept off the stems. Water deeply twice a week through the first summer, after which most varieties live on rainfall in all but the driest regions. Feed with a low phosphorus native fertiliser in spring. Prune lightly after flowering to keep shrubby varieties dense; hedge selections like 'Claret Tops' take two clips a year.

Common questions

Are melaleucas fast growing?

Moderately. Shrub varieties reach full size within three to four years, and paperbark trees put on 50cm to 1m a year in good conditions.

Will the roots cause problems near pipes or paving?

Keep the large paperbarks at least 5m from pipes, pools and foundations, because they seek out moisture. The shrub and hedging forms are well behaved anywhere in the garden.

How does delivery work?

Every melaleuca 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.