Lemon Bottlebrush

Lemon Bottlebrush (Callistemon pallidus 'Silver Cloud') swaps the usual scarlet brushes for soft lemon and cream, held over silvery new growth that gives the whole shrub a pale, dusty cast. It grows to about 2.5m tall and 2m wide, dense enough to screen a fence line, and it is one of the few natives that copes with both a boggy corner and a dry summer.

Why you'll love it

• Lemon flowers instead of red. Cream to soft yellow brushes sit far more comfortably in a white, silver or green scheme than a standard red bottlebrush.
• Silvery new growth. Fresh shoots come away pale and silvered, so the plant looks good between flowering flushes rather than only during them.
• Wet feet and drought, both. It tolerates ground that stays damp after rain and is drought tolerant once established, an unusual combination in one shrub.
• A serious wildlife plant. Nectar rich brushes pull in honeyeaters, bees and butterflies, and the twiggy interior gives small birds cover.

Where it works best

Screening and hedging. Plant 1m apart in a single row. That spacing lets each plant furnish from the base, where cheaper hedges go thin, and it closes into a solid line within two to three seasons.

Wet or poorly drained corners. Low spots, swale edges and the damp end of a block are genuinely suitable, because this is one of the wet feet tolerant callistemons.

Coastal gardens and mass planting. Salt tolerant enough for an exposed beachside boundary, and set in drifts at 1m spacing it needs no irrigation once away.

Growing lemon bottlebrush in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the heaviest flowering and densest habit; part shade produces a more open plant with fewer brushes. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and mediterranean gardens and is frost hardy once established.

Soil. Remarkably adaptable. Clay, sand and soils that stay damp after heavy rain are all tolerated, and it copes with dry poor ground once the roots are down. Mulch 75mm deep, clear of the stem.

Water and feed. Deep soak weekly through the first summer, then let the weather do the work. Use a low phosphorus native fertiliser once a year, straight after flowering, since high phosphorus products will damage it.

Pruning. Trim immediately after each flowering flush, taking the spent brushes plus a little of the wood behind them. That is what keeps a bottlebrush dense rather than bare kneed, and it reshoots reliably from old wood.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in four sizes: tube stock, 140mm pots in packs of ten, 200mm pots in packs of six, and 250mm pots in packs of three. Tube and 140mm plants are young and single stemmed, the sensible choice for a long boundary. A pack of ten 140mm plants covers about 9m of hedge at 1m spacing, while the 200mm and 250mm plants carry height on day one.

Some leaf drop or a bronzed tip after transit is normal and grows out with the first flush. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Expect new growth within four to six weeks in warm weather, and every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Everything you need to know about growing callistemon
• Compare the full bottlebrush range
• Browse screening plants that finish at 2m to 4m
• Shop bird attracting plants for the garden

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a hedge?

One metre apart in a single row. Tighter planting does not close the screen faster and it starves the lower branches of light, which is exactly where you want growth.

Can I keep it at 1.5m?

Yes. Trim after each flowering flush and it holds at 1.5m to 2m easily. Because it reshoots from old wood it stays furnished at the base instead of lifting into bare stems.

Will it cope with a spot that stays wet?

It will. This is one of the wet feet tolerant bottlebrushes, so damp ground after rain suits it. Permanently standing water is still too much for any shrub.