Thyme Leafed Melaleuca

Thyme Leafed Melaleuca (Melaleuca thymifolia) is a small honey myrtle that solves a common problem: a low native shrub that flowers well and does not mind wet ground. It grows to about 1m tall and 1.5m wide, with fine aromatic leaves and mauve to pink claw shaped flowers through the warmer months. Frost hardy, drought tolerant and salt tolerant, it fits almost every climate in the country.

Why you'll love it

• Flowers worth looking at closely. The mauve claw shaped blooms are nothing like a bottlebrush, and they repeat through the warm months.
• It handles boggy ground. Rated wet feet tolerant, so the low soggy corner of the block is where it earns its keep.
• Also drought tolerant. The same plant copes with dry spells once established, a rare combination that makes it forgiving.
• Aromatic fine foliage. The narrow leaves are scented when brushed, so it rewards planting near a path or a seat.
• Birds, bees and butterflies. Honeyeaters work the flowers through the season.

Where it works best

Mass planting. Plant 1m apart for a continuous low bank. The spreading habit means the plants knit sideways within two seasons.

Damp and low lying spots. Drainage swales, the base of a slope and beds beside a downpipe all suit it, and few flowering natives can say that.

Borders, rockeries and pots. At 1m tall it makes a low informal front line needing only a light shear, and a pot 400mm or wider holds it if the mix drains.

Growing Thyme Leafed Melaleuca in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun for the best flowering, with light shade tolerated at the cost of density. It suits tropical, subtropical, warm temperate and cool temperate gardens, and it is frost hardy once established.

Soil. Genuinely adaptable. It takes sand, clay and soil that stays wet after heavy rain, and does not need rich ground. Work compost through the bed and mulch 75mm deep.

Water and feed. Water twice a week through the first summer, then only in long dry spells. Feed once in early spring with a low phosphorus native fertiliser, since high phosphorus damages melaleucas.

Pruning. This one benefits from a firm hand. Shear it back by about a third after the main flush to keep the mound dense and the flowering heavy. Left untrimmed it goes woody in the centre. It reshoots from old wood, so hard renovation in spring works.

What to expect when it arrives

You can buy it three ways: tube stock, 140mm in packs of ten, or 200mm in packs of six. Tubes are the value option for a large mass planting, and because small natives establish quickly the head start from a bigger pot is smaller than you expect. The packs suit a border where the drift should close within a season or two.

All three sizes travel well, with fine wiry growth that does not bruise. Plant promptly, water in, and tip prune at planting to encourage branching low down. Expect new growth within about a month in warm weather, and a proper display in the second season. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Compare the full melaleuca range
• Identifying and caring for paperbarks and melaleucas
• White Lace Melaleuca, the same plant in white
• Browse the wider Australian native range

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a mass planting?

One metre apart. Because it spreads wider than it grows tall, that spacing gives a closed low bank within two seasons.

Will it really grow in a wet spot?

Yes. It is rated wet feet tolerant and copes with boggy ground that would kill most flowering shrubs. Permanently standing water is still too much, but soil that stays damp after rain is no problem.

Does it need pruning, and how cold can it take?

Shear it by about a third after the main flush each year, otherwise it goes woody in the middle. It is frost hardy once established, so it works in cool temperate gardens as well as the tropics.