Sweet Burst Bottlebrush

Sweet Burst Bottlebrush (Callistemon 'Sweet Burst') is a compact native shrub that flowers red and pulls in honeyeaters without taking over the bed. It settles at about 2m tall and 1.5m wide, small enough for a suburban hedge and tall enough to screen a fence at eye level. It handles frost, drought, salt wind and a wet winter patch, so there are few Australian gardens it cannot cope with.

Why you'll love it

• Bottlebrush flowers without a bottlebrush sized shrub. Red brushes on a plant that holds at 2m, rather than the larger species that outgrow a small garden.
• Birds arrive within weeks. Honeyeaters and lorikeets work the flowers and bees follow, so it brings wildlife into a new garden quickly.
• It tolerates the extremes. Frost hardy, drought tolerant, salt tolerant on coastal blocks, and comfortable in ground that stays damp after rain.
• Almost no maintenance. A trim after flowering is the whole job. It needs no spraying and very little feeding.

Where it works best

Hedging and screening. Plant 1m apart in a single row for a soft informal hedge at 1.5m to 2m. Trim after each flush and it thickens rather than opening up at the base.

Mass planting and borders. Groups of three or five at 1m centres read far better than a single plant. Along a path edge, keep it back 700mm from the hard surface.

Difficult sites. Coastal front gardens, windy corners, low spots that pond after storms and dry western beds all suit it. Few flowering shrubs span that range of conditions.

Growing bottlebrush in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun for the heaviest flowering; part shade works but you get fewer brushes. It grows through tropical, subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and arid gardens, which is close to the whole country, and it is frost hardy once established.

Soil. Not fussy. It takes clay, sand and poor ground, and unlike most natives it tolerates wet feet, so a low damp corner is fair game. Avoid high phosphorus fertilisers.

Water and feed. Deep water weekly through the first summer, then only in long dry spells. A low phosphorus native fertiliser in early spring is all it wants; overfeeding gives you leaf at the expense of flower.

Pruning. Trim lightly straight after each flush, taking the spent brushes and about 100mm of stem behind them. A neglected plant can be cut back hard into old wood and will reshoot.

What to expect when it arrives

It comes as tube stock, in 140mm packs of ten and in 200mm packs of six. Tube stock is the sensible choice for mass planting or a long hedge: young, single stemmed and quick to establish, closing a hedge in two to three seasons. The 140mm and 200mm plants are already branched and give a head start of about a season.

Natives travel well and this one is no exception, though expect a quiet fortnight after planting before new growth appears. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Read the callistemon care guide for pruning timing and feeding rates.
• Compare varieties in the bottlebrush collection.
• Browse other bird attracting plants for a wildlife garden.
• More on bottlebrush and where the genus fits.

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a hedge?

One metre apart in a single row. At that spacing the plants meet within two to three seasons and the hedge stays furnished from the ground up.

When does it flower?

The main flush is in spring, with lighter repeats through the warmer months in most gardens. Trimming immediately after each flush encourages the next one.

Will it survive frost?

Yes, it is frost hardy once established. Protect a first year plant through its first winter in a cold inland or tableland garden, and it will look after itself from then on.

Can I keep it below 2m?

Easily. One trim a year after flowering holds it at 1.2m to 1.5m without spoiling the following season's brushes.