Slow Growing Trees

How to choose a slow growing tree

Every tree here puts on well under 30cm of height a year, so the choice comes down to look and climate. For seasonal beauty, the deciduous group, Japanese maples, ginkgos, dogwoods and hornbeams, earns its keep twice: fresh spring foliage, then autumn colour. For year round structure, evergreens like the Teddy Bear magnolia, olives, bay and stone pine hold a solid green presence at a manageable scale. The third group is pure sculpture: dragon trees, grass trees, bottle trees and beaked yucca grow slowest of all and read as living statues rather than shade trees.

Where they work in Australian gardens

Slow growing trees are the safest planting near courtyards, paving and pools, because the root system stays in scale with the canopy. Beyond that, match the tree to your climate. Maples, dogwoods, hornbeams and ginkgos colour best in cool temperate gardens with cold autumn nights, from the ranges of New South Wales through Victoria and Tasmania. Frangipanis, bottle trees and grass trees suit the warm and dry half of the country, and frangipani in particular wants a frost free winter. Olive trees split the difference, thriving anywhere with hot dry summers, and grow slowly enough to hold in a large pot for a decade. If autumn colour is the priority and speed matters less than variety, the deciduous trees collection casts a wider net.

Planting and care

Dig the hole twice the width of the rootball and no deeper, plant at the original soil level, and stake for the first year in windy spots. Water deeply twice a week through the first summer, then taper off; most of these trees are drought tolerant once established. Mulch 75mm deep, clear of the trunk, and feed once in early spring at half the packet rate. Slow trees have small appetites, and overfeeding just forces weak growth. Prune deciduous trees lightly in late winter and evergreens after flowering. Because the years are what you are really paying for, it is often worth starting with established stock: advanced and large trees are freighted at cost.

Common questions

How slow is slow?

Most trees here add 15cm to 30cm a year. The sculptural group is slower again; a grass tree adds one to two centimetres of trunk a year, which is why advanced specimens are so prized.

Will they stay small forever?

No. Slow is a rate, not a ceiling, but the timescales are long: a tree adding 20cm a year takes 25 years to reach 5m. Check the mature height on each product page and plan for the size you will actually live with.

Which slow growing tree suits a pot best?

Olives, Japanese maples, frangipanis and bay all live happily for years in a 50cm to 60cm pot with premium mix and an annual top up. The wider slow growing range covers shrubs and groundcovers for the same low maintenance garden, delivered Australia wide with our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.