Tea Tree

Tea Tree 'Starry Night' (Leptospermum 'Starry Night') is grown as much for its foliage as its flowers. The leaves hold a deep burgundy purple all year, unusual in an Australian native, and in spring it covers itself in small white flowers flushed pink. It settles at about 2m tall and 1.5m wide, dense enough for a low hedge and tough enough to plant and forget.

Why you'll love it

• Year round colour without flowers. The dark burgundy foliage gives contrast against green hedging and silver leaved plants in every season.
• A heavy spring show. Small white flowers cover the plant for several weeks and bring in native bees and honeyeaters.
• Genuinely low maintenance. Frost hardy, drought tolerant, salt tolerant and happy in poor soil, so it asks very little once established.
• The right size for a suburban block. At 2m it screens a fence line without becoming a management problem.

Where it works best

Hedging and screening. Plant 1m apart in a single row for a dense hedge of 1.5m to 2m. It responds well to trimming, so the face stays tight rather than open and twiggy.

Mass planting. At 1m centres through a native bed or along a batter it reads as a continuous band of dark foliage.

Feature planting and pots. A single plant works as a colour accent in a mixed border, or in a 400mm pot on a courtyard.

Growing Tea Tree 'Starry Night' in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun. Shade thins the plant and washes the burgundy back towards green. It suits warm temperate, cool temperate, subtropical and Mediterranean gardens, and being frost hardy it handles cold southern and tableland winters once established.

Soil. Free draining above all. Poor sandy and gravelly soils are fine, but it will not take waterlogged clay. On heavy ground plant on a raised mound and mulch 75mm deep, clear of the stem.

Water and feed. Deep water weekly through the first summer, then only in long dry spells. Use a native fertiliser low in phosphorus in early spring, and go lightly, since rich feeding costs flowers.

Pruning. Trim straight after flowering, taking no more than a third and always cutting into leafy growth. Like most tea trees it does not reliably reshoot from bare wood, so never cut back into old stems.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in five sizes. Tubes and 140mm packs of 10 are the economical way to plant a hedge or mass planting, and they catch up quickly. The 200mm packs of 6 and 250mm packs of 3 suit a shorter run, while a 400mm plant is bushy already and gives immediate presence.

Plants travel upright and are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Expect roots to move first and visible growth within six to eight weeks in the warm season. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Leptospermum care guide for pruning, feeding and common problems.
• Compare other Australian native shrubs for a mixed native bed.
• See screening plants from 1m to 2m at the same working height.
• Browse bird attracting plants to build a wildlife garden around it.

Common questions

How far apart for a hedge?

One metre apart in a single row. The canopies meet within two seasons and the hedge holds at 1.5m to 2m with one trim a year after flowering.

Will the foliage stay purple?

In full sun, yes. The colour is deepest in cool weather and on plants in open positions. In shade the leaves shift towards bronze green and the plant thins.

Can I cut it back hard?

No. Tea trees rarely reshoot from bare wood, so a hard cut into old stems can leave permanent gaps. Trim lightly every year instead of renovating later.

Does it cope with frost and coastal wind?

Both. Frost hardy and salt tolerant, it is one of the more useful natives for exposed southern coastal gardens.