Baby Boomer Syzygium

Baby Boomer Syzygium (Syzygium australe 'Baby Boomer') is the lilly pilly scaled down to border height: a naturally compact 1.5m by 1.2m with the same glossy leaves, bronze new growth and psyllid resistance as its big screening cousins. It was bred for the jobs the tall forms are too much for, low hedges, pot pairs, balcony privacy and massed drifts, and being a pet friendly native with edible berries, it earns its place in family gardens.

Why you'll love it

• A lilly pilly that stays low. Finishes around 1.5m untrimmed and holds a clipped 1m hedge indefinitely, no fighting a 5m plant into a 1m space.
• Psyllid resistant. The clean leaf breeding of the modern selections, so no pimpled foliage and no spraying.
• Colour with every flush. New growth breaks glossy bronze red over the deep green, especially after each trim.
• Safe and edible. Pet friendly, with white summer flowers for the pollinators and magenta berries you can turn into jam.
• Coast and courtyard proof. Salt tolerant, wind tolerant, humidity tolerant and happy in large pots.

Where it works best

Low hedging and borders. Plant 60cm apart for a dense knee to waist high hedge; a 6m garden edge takes 10 or 11 plants.

Pots, balconies and courtyards. A pair in 40cm pots frames a doorway; a row in troughs makes balcony privacy at rail height.

Mass planting. Drifts fill beds with year round gloss and seasonal colour flushes for very little care.

Growing Baby Boomer in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun for the tightest habit; light part shade is fine. It thrives in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens and takes light frost once established; in colder districts give it a sheltered wall or a pot.

Soil. Any average garden soil with drainage; it also tolerates the damper spots most hedges resent. Mulch 75mm, clear of stems.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then it coasts. Feed with a native friendly controlled release fertiliser in spring and late summer.

Pruning. Two or three light trims through the warm months hold any shape from 60cm balls to a 1.2m formal hedge, and every trim buys another bronze flush.

What to expect when it arrives

Baby Boomer ships in hedge formats: 140mm packs of 10, 200mm packs of 6 and 250mm packs of 3, plus single 300mm plants, all in stock, with tubes and advanced 45L stock grown to order and shown as backorder (we confirm timing with you first). Delivery is Australia wide, from $29.95,. Expect quick establishment and a first coloured flush within weeks in warm weather. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Lilly pilly care guide
• Browse the full lilly pilly range
• Plants safe for pets

Common questions

How low can I keep it?

A clipped 60cm to 80cm border is comfortable, which is box hedge territory with far more colour. Left alone it domes at about 1.5m.

How is it different from Backyard Bliss?

Height class. Backyard Bliss is the 2m to 3m screening hedge; Baby Boomer is the under 1.5m border and pot plant. Same clean foliage and psyllid resistance, different jobs.

Does it fruit at this size?

Yes. Even low clipped hedges set the small magenta lilly pilly berries after their white summer flowers, edible for you and irresistible to birds.

Will it work as balcony privacy?

Very well. In 40cm to 50cm troughs at 60cm spacing it builds a dense green rail height screen that handles wind, salt and reflected heat.