Water Gums (Tristaniopsis)
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Water gums are the native trees councils plant when they need something that will not fail: evergreen, upright, with glossy leaves, cream summer flowers and a smooth bark that peels to show cream, tan and grey patches. Tristaniopsis laurina tolerates wet ground and dry, sun and part shade, and its roots stay out of paths and pipes. Choose the species, the glossy Luscious or the compact Sprite by the size of the space.
Which size? How many?
Size ladder: what each pot looks like on arrivalHedge calculator: plants per metre, pricedHeights on arrival sit under every size on the product page. Freight is quoted with multiple freight companies and passed on at cost.
Luscious® Water Gum Tristaniopsis laurina 'DOW10' PBR
12 sizes, Tube to 750L
50% offFrom $45.95$91.95Unit price /Unavailable-
Water Gum Tree Tristaniopsis laurina
13 sizes, 140mm to 1000L
35% offFrom $194.95$300.95Unit price /Unavailable -
Water Gum Tristaniopsis ‘Sprite’
2 sizes, Tube to 200mm
21% offFrom $33.95$42.95Unit price /Unavailable 
TRISTANIOPSIS laurina Luscious® ‘DOW10’ PBR (Water Gum) Ex Ground
12% off$6,640.95$7,546.95On backorderUnit price /Unavailable-
TRISTANIOPSIS laurina (Water Gum) Ex Ground
38% off$8,854.95$14,282.95On backorderUnit price /Unavailable
More information
How to choose a water gum
Water Gum Tree is the species, a street and garden tree to about 8m tall and 5m wide with a dense rounded head, and the one for a nature strip, a driveway or a boundary screen. Luscious is a selected form with larger, glossier leaves and coppery new growth, to about 7m, bred for the suburban garden. Sprite is the compact choice, to about 5m, for a small courtyard, a narrow side passage or a large pot.
The trade-off is size against canopy: the species gives the most shade, Sprite fits where the others would not. All three are slow to moderate and long lived.
Where water gums work
Water gums grow naturally along creeks from Queensland to Victoria, so they take wet feet, and in cultivation they tolerate dry periods too once established. They grow in full sun to part shade in any soil, are frost tolerant once established and handle coastal winds a street back from the beach. Use them as shade trees, screens at 2m to 3m spacing, avenue plantings, or a single feature in a lawn. Their roots are non invasive, which is why they are approved for streets and planted near paving. See the rest of the Australian native trees range, and the small trees for urban gardens if the space is tight.
Planting and spacing
Space screening trees 2m to 3m apart and shade trees 5m from buildings. Dig a hole twice the width of the pot, plant level with the soil, stake advanced trees for the first year, water in deeply and mulch to 75mm, kept off the trunk. Water deeply twice a week through the first summer.
Care basics
Once established, water in long dry spells and feed in spring with a native fertiliser. Prune the lower branches in the first few years to lift the canopy and show the bark, and remove any crossing branches; otherwise the tree shapes itself. Pests are few. For the planting and staking of advanced trees read how to choose a shade tree for your climate.
Common questions
How fast does a water gum grow?
Slow to moderate, about 50cm a year once established. Plant an advanced size if you want shade quickly.
Do water gum roots damage paths or pipes?
No. The roots are non invasive, which is why water gums are a standard council street tree.
Can a water gum grow in a wet spot?
Yes. It grows along creeks in the wild and takes periodic waterlogging as well as dry periods.
Is Tristaniopsis a eucalypt?
No. It is in the same family, the myrtles, but it is not a gum tree and does not drop branches the way large eucalypts can.
