Northern Beaches FloraBaby Sun Rose Blowfly Grass (Briza maxima) Bottlebrushes Callistemon citrinus Coastal Morning Glory (Ipomoea indica) Cyathea cooperi Grevillea ‘Peaches and Cream’ Grevillea Poorinda Royal Mantle Native Violet Norfolk Pine Ochna Pigface Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata) Scurvy Weed Spear Thistle (Cirsium vulgare) Spiny-headed Mat-rush

Visitors to the Northern Beaches will see that the Bottlebrushes (Callistemon) are popular plantings on road and street verges, parks and reserves, as well as private gardens.

The common name of Bottlebrush applied to a group of plants with distinctive red bottle shape flower. Sometimes spelt as Bottle Brush, Bottlebrush, Bottlebrush, and Bottlebrushes, they are described in a genus as Callistemon whose entire genus is endemic to Australia, although they have become a popular and widely cultivated species elsewhere.

The Callistemon are very distinctive genus, with their bottlebrush shaped Inflorescence, can be a shrub to small and sometimes large trees. There are even dwarf cultivars of Callistemon. Many have their own common names, with some common names being applied across species.

Crimson Bottlebrush (Callistemon citrinus), Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Crimson Bottlebrush (Callistemon citrinus), Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW

Their have a rough bark rough, from pale, smooth, peeling and papery to dark and fissured. New growth is villous (covered with long, soft, straight hairs; shaggy but not matted), that can is often suffused with pink.

Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW
Callistemon citrinus / Crimson Bottlebrush, Dee Why, Northern Beaches NSW

When looking at general features to identify a species, size and how the Inflorescence hang are sometimes used. A small bush, may be a dwarf cultivar, whilst large shrubs and trees that have “weeping branches” may be used to give a general guideline as to the species. However, pendulous branches are not uncommon among the Callistemon, and are not the defining feature. The critical points are the leaf shape, size and texture. For example with C. viminalis they have small, narrow, thin leaves, whilst C. citrinus have has larger, wider, thicker leaves.

Weeping Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis), Alice Springs NT
Weeping Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis)

Belonging to the family Myrtaceae, they are described in the genus Callistemon, however there status as a separate taxon is still in doubt. Callistemon is sometimes included in Melaleuca, although the taxonomy of this group is yet to be fully resolved.

There are about 30 species endemic to Australia and New Caledonia has 5 anomalous species that are sometimes placed in either Callistemon or Melaleuca.

Weeping Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis), Alice Springs NT
Weeping Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis)
  • Scientific classification
  • Kingdom: Plantae
  • Phylum: Charophyta
  • Class: Equisetopsida
  • Subclass: Magnoliidae
  • Superorder: Rosanae
  • Order: Myrtales
  • Family: Myrtaceae
  • Genus: Callistemon

Footnote & References

  1. Many thanks for species ID and information to members of Australian Indigenous Plant Identification Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/1469859343324569/
  2. Callistemon R.Br., Bottle-Brush, Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://id.biodiversity.org.au/taxon/apni/51366602

Northern Beaches FloraBaby Sun Rose Blowfly Grass (Briza maxima) Bottlebrushes Callistemon citrinus Coastal Morning Glory (Ipomoea indica) Cyathea cooperi Grevillea ‘Peaches and Cream’ Grevillea Poorinda Royal Mantle Native Violet Norfolk Pine Ochna Pigface Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata) Scurvy Weed Spear Thistle (Cirsium vulgare) Spiny-headed Mat-rush

Northern BeachesNorthern Beaches Fauna Northern Beaches Flora

New South WalesBarunguba Montague Island Bourke Blue Mountains Bundeena Central Coast Kosciuszko National Park Mount Kaputar National Park Lower North Shore Northern Beaches Sapphire Coast Snowy Mountains Region South Coast Stony Range Regional Botanic Garden Sydney