Red Silky Oak

Red Silky Oak (Grevillea banksii) is the fast native shrub for a hot, exposed block where softer plants give up. It settles at about 4m tall and 3m wide, carries deep red brush flowers through the warmer months, and honeyeaters find it within days. It grows in sand, in poor soil and in salt wind.

Why you'll love it

• Flowers that pull birds in. Large red brush flowers hold nectar over a long season, and honeyeaters and lorikeets work them daily.
• Quick cover. One of the faster natives to reach screening height, so a bare fence line fills in within a couple of seasons.
• Genuinely tough. Drought, heat and salt tolerant, and content in poor soil once the roots are down.
• Very little upkeep. No feeding regime, no staking, no spraying. A trim after flowering is the whole job.
• Fine native foliage. Deeply divided grey green leaves that read well against rendered walls and coastal light.

Where it works best

Screening and hedging. Plant 2m apart in a single row. This is an informal screen, not a clipped hedge, so expect a soft layered wall rather than a flat face.

Windbreaks and coastal gardens. Two staggered rows at 2m spacing filter wind, which serves an exposed block better than one tight line trying to block it.

One honest caution. This Queensland native hybridises with local grevilleas and has naturalised in parts of coastal southern Australia. Near bushland outside its range, plant a local grevillea instead.

Growing Red Silky Oak in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, all day. It suits tropical, subtropical, warm temperate and arid to semi-arid gardens. Frost tolerance is light frost only, so the tablelands and hard frosting southern gardens are not for it.

Soil. Free draining is the only real requirement, and poor sandy ground is fine. Do not enrich the bed. Like most of its family it is phosphorus sensitive, so keep general fertiliser and manures away.

Water and feed. Deep water once or twice a week through the first summer, then only in long dry spells. If you feed at all, use a low phosphorus native fertiliser in early spring.

Pruning. Tip prune young plants to build low branches, then cut back by up to a third after the main flush. It resents hard cuts into bare old wood, so trim lightly and often.

What to expect when it arrives

We grow it in two sizes. The 200mm pot comes in packs of six, the sensible buy for a screen, and the single 300mm plant suits a feature position. Both arrive as branched young shrubs, usually well under a metre tall.

Grevilleas travel well, though some leaf drop and the loss of any open flower is normal. Expect three or four quiet weeks, then strong growth through the first warm season. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• How to grow and prune grevilleas in Australia
• Browse the full grevillea range
• Coastal and salt tolerant plants
• Native plants that bring birds into the garden

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a screen?

Two metres apart in a single row. It is a wide shrub at maturity, and crowding only makes the bases go woody and bare.

How fast does it grow?

Fast for a native. In a warm garden with good drainage it often reaches 2m within two seasons, then slows as it thickens out.

Will frost kill it?

Light frost is tolerated once established, but repeated hard frost is not. In frost prone districts keep it against a warm north facing wall, or choose a frost hardy grevillea.