Yellow Box

Yellow Box (Eucalyptus melliodora) is the tree behind Australia's best known honey, and a first rate shade tree for a large garden or a paddock. It grows to around 15m tall with a 10m spread, holding a broad, open canopy that cools the ground without blacking it out. Cream white flowers bring bees and birds in numbers, and once established it asks for nothing.

Why you'll love it

• Shade with light underneath. The canopy is open rather than dense, so grass and understorey planting still survive beneath a mature tree.
• The honey tree. Prized by apiarists for the nectar in its cream flowers, which also carry bees, butterflies and birds.
• Frost hardy and drought tolerant. It handles hard frost, extended dry and reflected heat, a rare combination in one tree.
• Grows in poor country. Thin, compacted or low fertility soil that defeats other trees suits it.

Where it works best

Shade tree for acreage. This is a large tree. Give it 10m of clear width and keep it well away from the house, sheds and services. On a small suburban block it is the wrong choice, and no amount of pruning fixes that.

Windbreaks, shelter belts and avenues. Planted in a row at 8m to 10m spacing it filters wind across an open paddock and gives stock somewhere to stand in summer. Along a rural driveway, stretch that to 10m or more so each tree can develop its spreading crown.

Growing Yellow Box in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, always. It is at home in warm temperate, cool temperate, arid and semi-arid, and Mediterranean gardens, and properly frost hardy once away. It is not the tree for humid subtropical or tropical coastal gardens.

Soil. Adaptable, and tolerant of poor and shallow ground. It prefers reasonable drainage but copes with heavier clay far better than most eucalypts. Avoid ground that stays waterlogged.

Water and feed. Water deeply once or twice a week through the first two summers to drive the roots down, then leave it alone. Native trees resent phosphorus, so use a low phosphorus native fertiliser for the first couple of years only.

Pruning. Very little. Remove crossing or damaged branches while the tree is young to set a single leader and a clear trunk. Formative pruning in the first three years saves expensive work later.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in three sizes: a single tube, 140mm in a pack of 10, and an advanced 100L. Tubes and 140mm plants are seedlings, often knee height or less, and for eucalypts that is genuinely the better buy: young stock roots more strongly and frequently overtakes a larger planting within a few years. The 100L is for people who want presence on day one.

Expect a slow first season while roots go down, then a metre or more of height a year in good conditions. Plants are packed upright and delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Choosing shade trees for paddocks and acreage
• Browse the Australian native tree range
• Compare trees for windbreaks and shelter belts
• How to pick a canopy tree for shade

Common questions

How close can I plant it to the house?

Keep it at least 15m from the house, sheds, septic lines and paving. At around 15m tall and 10m wide it is a tree for acreage or a large block, not a suburban courtyard.

How fast does it grow?

Moderate for a eucalypt. Expect a slow first year, then roughly a metre a year in good conditions, easing as the crown broadens. Growth is slower in arid districts and on very poor ground.

Is a tube really better value than an advanced tree?

For eucalypts, often yes. Small stock establishes a natural root system quickly and catches larger plantings within a few seasons. Buy the 100L when you need height now and can water it through the first two summers.