Eureka Bottlebrush

Eureka Bottlebrush (Callistemon 'Eureka') is a compact native shrub reaching about 2.5m tall and 2m wide, carrying deep red brushes with a purple cast rather than the usual scarlet. It flowers heavily, feeds birds and bees, and copes with the conditions that kill most shrubs: drought, salt, frost and wet ground.

Why you'll love it

• Flower colour you do not see often. The brushes open a deep red shading through to purple, richer and darker than a common bottlebrush.
• It tolerates almost everything. Frost hardy, drought tolerant, salt tolerant and able to sit in wet ground, which is a rare combination in one shrub.
• A hedge that earns its place. Planted 1.5m apart it makes a screen to about 2.5m that flowers rather than simply filling space.
• Wildlife every season. Nectar rich brushes bring honeyeaters, native bees and butterflies into the garden.

Where it works best

Screening and hedging. Plant 1.5m apart in a single row for a dense screen. It reshoots from old wood, so it can be cut back hard and still furnish right down to the ground.

Damp and difficult ground. Wet feet tolerance makes it one of the few shrubs for a low spot, a swale or the edge of a drainage line where other plants drown.

Mass planting and feature use. In a group of three or five it reads as a block of colour in flower, and as a single shrub it holds a corner without outgrowing it.

Growing Eureka Bottlebrush in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun for the heaviest flowering. It is at home across tropical, subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens, and it is frost hardy once established, which puts it within reach of most of the country.

Soil. Not fussy. It handles clay, sand and poor ground, and unlike most natives it tolerates periods of waterlogging. Mulch 75mm deep and keep it clear of the stem.

Water and feed. Water twice a week through the first summer, then it can live on rainfall in most districts. Use a low phosphorus native fertiliser in early spring, because standard garden fertilisers can damage the roots.

Pruning. Trim straight after each flush, taking the spent brushes and a little of the wood behind them. That one habit is the difference between a dense shrub and a leggy one.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in four sizes: 200mm pots sold in packs of six, single 300mm pots, and 25L and 45L containers. The 200mm packs are the value option for a hedge run or mass planting. The 300mm is the usual single plant size, and the 25L and 45L plants arrive already branched, carrying real height on day one.

Expect two or three quiet weeks after planting, then active growth, and flowering in the first warm season from the established sizes. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Read the complete callistemon care guide.
• Compare varieties in the bottlebrush collection.
• Browse other bird attracting plants.
• Weigh up alternative hedging and screening plants.

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a screen?

Space plants 1.5m apart in a single row. Closer than that and the lower branches shade each other out, leaving gaps near the ground where you want cover most.

When should I prune it?

Straight after each flowering flush, never in the weeks before one. Take the spent brushes plus a few centimetres of wood behind them, and the next flush comes back thicker.

Will it cope with a wet, boggy spot?

Better than almost any other native shrub. It handles periods of waterlogging that would kill a grevillea or a westringia, though it still prefers ground that drains eventually.