Bush Christmas Lilly Pilly

Bush Christmas Lilly Pilly (Syzygium australe 'Bush Christmas') is the compact lilly pilly for a hedge you want at head height. Untrimmed it reaches about 3.5m tall and 2m wide, but small glossy leaves and dense branching mean most gardeners hold it at 1.5m to 2m with two trims a year. New growth flushes orange red before hardening to deep green, so a clipped hedge colours up after every cut.

Why you'll love it

• Colour every time you trim it. Fresh growth comes away orange red and holds for weeks, so a clipped hedge always has warmth through it.
• Small leaves take a hard clip. A cut face looks neat, not shredded, so it shapes into balls, cones and standards as readily as a hedge.
• Wet feet and salt are fine. Unusually for a hedging plant it tolerates damp ground, and it is salt tolerant, so coastal boundaries work.
• Native, edible and pet friendly. White flowers, then edible berries the birds work through, and foliage not toxic to cats or dogs.

Where it works best

Hedging and screening. Plant 75cm apart. Being compact it needs tighter spacing than a full sized lilly pilly to knit without thin patches low down.

Topiary and shaping. Single plants clip into geometric shapes and standards. Allow a metre between shaped specimens so each keeps its outline.

Pots and small gardens. A pot 500mm or wider holds it at 1.5m to 2m, which suits a matched pair at an entry.

Growing Bush Christmas Lilly Pilly in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the densest hedge and the strongest colour, though part shade works with a looser habit. This is a plant for tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens, comfortable in humidity. It takes light frost once established, so hard frosting inland and southern gardens want a hardier hedge.

Soil. Most soils suit it, including ground that stays damp. Improve poor soil with compost and mulch 75mm deep, kept clear of the stems.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then weekly in hot weather. Feed a controlled release native fertiliser in early spring and again in late summer to keep the colour up.

Pruning. Tip prune from planting to build density low down, then trim after the spring flush and again in late summer. It reshoots from old wood, so a neglected hedge can be cut back hard. If psyllid pimples appear on soft growth, clipping the tips off is usually enough.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in five sizes: tube, 140mm in packs of ten, 200mm in packs of six, and 45L and 100L containers. For a long hedge the tube and 140mm packs are the value choice, since young lilly pillies catch a larger plant within two or three seasons.

This variety is steadier than the fast screening lilly pillies, so budget three seasons for a tube stock hedge to close. Plants travel upright, delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Read the full lilly pilly care guide.
• Compare varieties across the lilly pilly range.
• Consider Lilly Pilly 'Resilience' for a taller, faster screen.
• Browse other plants suited to topiary and shaping.

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a hedge?

Seventy five centimetres apart in a single row. At about 2m wide untrimmed it needs tighter spacing than the big screening lilly pillies.

How tall will it get if I leave it?

Around 3.5m tall and 2m wide. Because it shoots from old wood, a hedge held at 1.5m to 2m stays furnished at the base rather than lifting into bare trunks.

Is it safe for pets, and are the berries edible?

It is listed as pet friendly and is not toxic to cats or dogs. The berries are edible for people too, tart and best used in jams, though birds usually get there first.