Pink Powder Puff

Pink Powder Puff (Calliandra 'Pink Poodle') carries silky pink flower heads like small pom poms across a rounded shrub of about 2.5m tall and 2.5m wide. It grows fast and flowers in flushes through the warm months, bringing honeyeaters and native bees in from the moment the blooms open. Where a warm climate garden needs colour at eye level rather than another wall of green, this is the shrub to plant.

Why you'll love it

• Flowers you notice from the street. Clusters of fine pink stamens open across the outer canopy in repeat flushes rather than one short burst.
• Fast to fill a gap. It puts on size quickly, so a young plant reads as an established shrub within two to three seasons.
• Birds and bees work it hard. The nectar rich flowers pull honeyeaters and native bees into the garden with no effort from you.
• Heat, humidity and dry spells suit it. Once established it takes drought, humidity and hot exposed positions, a short list for a shrub that flowers this freely.

Where it works best

Feature planting. One plant at the corner of a bed or beside an entry carries the display on its own.

Informal screening and hedging. Plant 1.5m apart for a soft screen that filters a view. It will not clip into a crisp formal hedge, so use it where a relaxed edge suits.

Pots and containers. A pot 500mm or wider holds it near 1.5m with regular water and an annual trim.

Growing Pink Powder Puff in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the heaviest flowering. This is a plant for tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens only. It is frost tender, so cold inland districts, the tablelands and frosting southern gardens will lose it in the first hard winter unless it sits against a warm sheltered wall.

Soil. Any reasonably drained soil works, improved with compost at planting. On heavy clay, plant on a raised mound and mulch 75mm deep, clear of the stem.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then taper off as the roots go down. A complete slow release fertiliser in early spring and again in mid summer keeps the flushes coming.

Pruning. Trim lightly after each flowering flush to hold it dense. It takes a harder cut back in late winter if it has gone leggy.

What to expect when it arrives

It is sold in two sizes: tube stock, and 140mm plants in packs of ten. Tubes are young single stemmed plants, usually well under knee height, and the sensible buy given how quickly this shrub moves. The 140mm packs suit a full screen line done in one go.

Plants travel upright and are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Expect a quiet few weeks after planting, strong growth once the weather warms, then a first proper flowering in the season after planting. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Hedging plants beyond the usual choices
• Browse the full flowering plant range
• Compare screening plants from 2m to 4m
• See more bird attracting plants

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a screen?

Plant 1.5m apart in a single row. That lets each shrub reach its natural 2.5m width and knit into its neighbours without crowding the lower branches into bare stems.

Will it survive frost?

No. It is frost tender, and even a light frost burns the soft growth. In frost prone gardens grow it in a pot that can shift under cover, or choose a frost hardy flowering shrub instead.

Can I keep it smaller than 2.5m?

Yes. A trim after each flowering flush holds it at 1.5m to 2m and costs you very little bloom, because it flowers on new growth.