Browse plants / Myrtaceae
Hillock bush Melaleuca hypericifolia
Also called Red-flowered paperbark
When it flowers
- January, flowering
- February, flowering
- March, not flowering
- April, not flowering
- May, not flowering
- June, not flowering
- July, not flowering
- August, not flowering
- September, not flowering
- October, not flowering
- November, flowering
- December, flowering
Dense, wide shrub with large red bottlebrushes hidden among the older stems in summer.
A hardy shrub from the NSW coast with soft, oval leaves and bright red brushes that grow on the older wood, often inside the canopy. Copes with coastal wind and damp soil. Low forms make good groundcovers.
In the garden
- Attracts
- Birds and pollinating insects
- Flowers
- Red bottlebrush spikes, 4 to 8 cm long, on older stems.
- Leaves
- Soft, oval, dull green leaves in opposite pairs; papery bark.
Growing conditions
- Climate
- Subtropical and temperate
- Light
- Full sun to part shade
- Soil
- Sandy, loam and clay
- Drainage
- Copes with occasional wet
- Frost
- Light frost
- Water
- Some dry spells
- Coast
- Sheltered coastal gardens
Planting and care
- Grown from
- Seed and cuttings
Planting
Sun or part shade, including coastal gardens. Allow 3 m to spread.
Pruning
Prune lightly after flowering, leaving the older stems that carry next year's flowers.
Care
Water through long dry spells. Usually trouble-free; prune out tips webbed by sawfly larvae.
Where it comes from
- Family
- Myrtaceae
- Order
- Myrtales
- Native to
- New South Wales
- Natural range
- Coastal heath and swamp margins of NSW.
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
- Melaleuca hypericifolia 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.