Common Name: Bottlebrush
Scientific Name: Callistemon ‘Red Cluster’ (Bush and Tree form), Callistemon viminalis (Weeping)
Type of Plant: Shrub, Tree
Description: Bottlebrush in tree form makes a showy specimen, with its bushy, upright growth habit and bright red blooms. This bottlebrush shrub variety can be grown as a large bush or a small single-trunk or multi-trunk tree. The weeping bottlebrush tree is a dream of a tree for its small stature, red flowers, and romantic weeping form.
Mature Size: 8-15′ tall x 8-10′ wide (Bush and Tree form), 15′ x 15′ (Weeping)
Blooms: The flower spikes shaped like a bottle brush appear on and off all year – more in warmer months
Fruit: No
Climate Requirements: The tree loves warm climate, moist soil, and a lot of sunlight. Bottlebrush will thrive in most acidic to light alkaline soils; they need water but do not thrive in heavy moisture without adequate drainage. With plenty of sun these plants should thrive as long as the climate is moderate and low salt–do not plant on shoreline properties.
Care Requirements: Fertilize 3 times a year – spring, summer and autumn – with a good-quality granular fertilizer high in phosphorus (or supplement with bone meal) to produce heavy bloom. Because of its faster growth rate, the wood of a bottlebrush tree isn’t as dense as, say, an oak tree, so keep the tree staked while young to protect from breaking in strong winds.
Spacing: Space plants 6-10′ apart, depending on type and form
Water Needs: Average
Maintenance: Low
Attracts: Bees, Butterflies, Hummingbirds
Special Uses/Attributes: A great landscape accent plant, this bottlebrush tree is perfect for the corner of the house or near the entry – though not too near, honeybees love the red flowers.
Florida Native: No