Browse plants / Pittosporaceae
Common apple-berry Billardiera scandens
Also called Hairy apple-berry
When it flowers
- January, not flowering
- February, not flowering
- March, not flowering
- April, not flowering
- May, not flowering
- June, not flowering
- July, not flowering
- August, flowering
- September, flowering
- October, flowering
- November, flowering
- December, flowering
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Dainty twiner with creamy-yellow bells and small edible berries, for shady spots.
A slender, light climber of forests in the south-east. Nodding creamy-yellow bell flowers age to purple and are followed by sausage-shaped green berries that fall when ripe. Light enough to grow through shrubs without smothering them.
In the garden
- Flowers
- Nodding, narrow bell flowers, creamy-yellow ageing to purple.
- Leaves
- Narrow, soft, slightly hairy leaves on wiry stems.
- Attracts
- Birds, pollinating insects and shelter for small wildlife
Bush food
Green berries are eaten when fully ripe and soft, usually after they fall in summer. Unripe fruit is unpleasant.
Growing conditions
- Light
- Full sun to full shade
- Soil
- Sandy and loam
- Drainage
- Needs good drainage
- Frost
- Moderate frost
- Water
- Some dry spells
- Coast
- Sheltered coastal gardens
- Climate
- Subtropical, temperate and cool and alpine
Planting and care
- Grown from
- Seed and cuttings
Planting
Dappled shade; let it twine through a shrub or up a small trellis.
Pruning
Little pruning needed.
Care
Water in dry spells and mulch the roots.
Where it comes from
- Family
- Pittosporaceae
- Order
- Apiales
- Native to
- ACT, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria
- Natural range
- Forest and woodland of south-eastern Australia.
Where to buy
Specialist native nurseries.
We don't have stockists listed for this plant yet. Local native nurseries are often the best place to ask.
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Further reading
- Billardiera scandens on the Atlas of Living Australia (Atlas of Living Australia)
Native nurseries near you
An independent list of nurseries that specialise in Australian native plants. Nobody pays to be on it. Distances are approximate and in a straight line. Opening hours and stock vary, so check before you go.