Stout Paperbark

Stout Paperbark (Melaleuca preissiana) is the Australian native to plant where the ground is difficult. It reaches about 7m tall and 5m wide, with thick, soft, papery bark peeling from a stout trunk, and it copes with seasonally waterlogged soil as comfortably as it copes with a dry summer. Cream and white brush flowers bring honeyeaters in from a long way off.

Why you'll love it

• It solves wet ground. A swamp paperbark from south west Western Australia, so it tolerates wet feet when a low corner stays soggy, then handles a dry summer without complaint.
• The bark is the feature. Thick, layered, cream to white paper that peels in sheets and holds interest all year.
• Birds and bees find it. The brush flowers carry heavy nectar, and honeyeaters, lorikeets and native bees work them hard.
• Built for exposed and coastal sites. Salt tolerant, frost hardy, drought tolerant and content in poor sandy soil, a rare combination in a tree this size.

Where it works best

Screening and windbreaks. Plant 3m apart for a screen, or 4m apart in a double staggered row for a windbreak that filters wind rather than blocking it.

Wet corners and drainage lines. Low spots, swale edges and seasonally flooded ground are where it outperforms almost anything else.

Coastal gardens and shade. Salt spray does not trouble it, and the canopy throws useful shade over a lawn within a few years. Allow 5m of clear width.

Growing Stout Paperbark in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, Mediterranean and arid or semi-arid gardens, so Perth, Adelaide, Sydney, south east Queensland and dry inland districts all work. It handles frost once established. Cool temperate gardens with hard winters and the wet tropics are the two settings where we would choose something else.

Soil. Genuinely undemanding. Sand, gravel, clay and seasonally saturated ground are all fine. Mulch 75mm deep and keep it clear of the trunk.

Water and feed. Water deeply twice a week for the first summer, then leave it be, because after two seasons it gets by on natural rain through most of its range. Feed only if growth stalls, and then with a low phosphorus native fertiliser.

Pruning. Very little is required. Remove lower limbs in the first few years if you want a clear trunk showing the bark. It reshoots readily from old wood, so a badly shaped tree can be reworked.

What to expect when it arrives

We list this one in a single size, an advanced 90L tree, currently supplied on backorder from the growing farm. That means a tree already carrying several metres of height and a formed trunk, which is the sensible way to buy a paperbark: the bark character that makes the species worth planting only shows once the trunk has some girth.

A tree this size is freighted upright and secured. Expect some leaf loss in transit and a quiet first month while the roots move into the surrounding soil. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every tree carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Identifying and caring for paperbark trees
• Compare the full melaleuca collection
• Browse other Australian native trees
• How to work with a waterlogged garden

Common questions

Will it grow in a spot that floods after rain?

Yes, and that is its strongest suit. It comes from seasonally inundated wetlands in south west Western Australia, so periodic waterlogging is normal for it. Permanent standing water all year is still too much.

How far apart should I plant it for a screen?

About 3m apart in a single row, or 4m apart in a double staggered row for a windbreak. Given a mature width near 5m, closer spacing crowds the canopies and pushes the trees upward.

Is it safe to plant near paving and pipes?

Paperbarks are moisture seekers, so keep them 4m to 5m clear of a house, a paved area or a sewer line. With that clearance in open ground they cause no trouble.