Bottlebrushes

[ahosey01]

I have no bottlebrushes.  I live in zone 9a.  Neighbor down the street has a big mature Callistemon viminalis that was knocked back to the trunk and biggest branches in 2011 (the worst year on recent record for us), but recovered nicely.  Was also in a wide-open spot away from the house and not near much other vegetative cover.

Would like to know two things -

a.) Can I use Callistemon viminals (tall, weeping form) as a foundation planting?  I'm under the impression the roots are fairly non-invasive.

b.) Can anyone recommend more Callistemons (or Melaleucas, if you are wedded to the conclusions of the 2009 recategorization) that I should plant that would be hardy in my area?  They need not be trees - probably have more room for shrubs in my garden than anything.  Was thinking of Callistemon phoenicius and Callistemon pinifolius.

Let me know, and thanks!

[ahosey01]

Double post.  Not good at technology.

Edited July 21, 2022 by ahosey01

[Manalto]

I've had good luck in 8B with 'Little John'. I have it at the edge of the planting bed in full sun, slightly raised, so drainage is good in this high-rainfall region. It stays small (2' tall after 3 years), slowly getting wider. There has been no winter damage so far. It's trouble-free and frequently in bloom. It makes visitors smile.

[Chester B]

Good list here:

https://xeraplants.com/genus/callistemon/?all

I have Woodlanders Hardy Red which is a pretty common one in these parts, but I find it pretty leggy.  No amount of pruning makes it get bushy.

I also have Callistemon ‘Wetland’s Challenged Mutant’ which form a pretty dense upright bush that look similar to many conifers except with rosemary like leaves.

I can vouch for this nursery and their information, I've been going to them for years.

 

Edited July 21, 2022 by Chester B

[HiwaKika]

I have a couple bright red Callistemon Viminalis that have maxed in height at 14' -15'.  Branches grow wild and need yearly pruning unless you like them wild.  Roots aren't a problem. Was tempted to chop the trees down entirely cause they are messy when the bottlebrush hairs drop. Otherwise, they look nice loaded with red bottlebrush and all kinds of birds like them. Caught a small raccoon napping one morning.

Also have a white bottlebrush Melaleuca quinquenervia paperbark tree. Was 28' tall when installed by crane in 2017. Now a little over 40' tall and probably fully grown. Low maintenance, no mess. White bottlebrush hairs mostly disappear when they drop. Cool looking paper trunks. Not so spectacular greenery. These are banned I believe in FL and aren't very popular in Calif, but are usually tucked near buildings when you find them and usually in mass quantities like on a school campus. CBS Studio Center Radford has these throughout the lot and Paramount Pictures has them too. Both studios are owned by Paramount so maybe that's how that happened. 

[Fusca]

I grew the common Callistemon citrinus in San Antonio and it did fine in the 100°+ temps and even came back from the roots after 9°!  One of the few plants the buyers of my house decided to keep!  It's always been one of my favorite non-palm trees.  Here I am trying the C. viminalis 'Hannah Ray' but it hasn't flowered yet since I just planted it a couple of months ago.

[thyerr01]

I think C. viminalis is fine as a foundation plant in Z9a as long as you are ok with occasional winter damage, but there are definitely more cold hardy bottlebrushes available in the US like various C. rigidus cultivars.  I have the C . viminalis cultivar 'Boyette' which is supposedly ever-flowering, but it is still quite small and hasn't flowered for me yet (Z9a Houston).

I also have several C. pinifolius 'Orange', C. montanus?, 2 different C. glaucus/speciosa?, C. phoeniceus, and C. pachyphyllus, which I grew from seed. All are now 2-3' tall, but none have flowered yet. The C. montanus is definitely something else. C. glaucus and C. speciosa are synonyms, I grew seed from both and they look completely different and its possible that neither are correct. I think your choices are great, both C. pinifolius and C. phoeniceus are tough plants and the first has interesting green or orange flowers. 

I like my bottlebrushes red, so I also recommend Melaleuca coccinea, elliptica, fulgens and laterita, and Kunzea baxteri (one of my favourites and its winter flowering). My Kunzeas had no issues with a couple of light freezes last winter, and I plan to start those Melaleucas off from seed when I can find the time. These will all grow great in your climate.

For something slightly different, take a look at Calothamnus species - one sided bottlebrushes. Its slightly too cold and much too humid for them here, but they would be fine in Arizona.

[ShadyDan]

 

'Little John' has been pretty wimpy for me, died in an average 8b winter when I tried one a few years ago.

I'm growing some Callistemon subulatus which is supposedly the hardiest bright coloured bottle brush you can grow. My worry (since its a mountain species) is Az would be too hot/dry for it to thrive.

I only have 1 bottlebrush in the ground right now, which is Callistemon pallidus 'Eleanor'. It took a rough 8b winter last year like a champ with no damage. Here is mine in flower this summer:

[Manalto]

On 7/28/2022 at 3:05 PM, ShadyDan said:

 

'Little John' has been pretty wimpy for me, died in an average 8b winter when I tried one a few years ago.
 

It may be happier with more heat. It would be interesting to see how it does in the Southwest US without the humidity.

[thyerr01]

I agree with @Manalto. 'Little John' is a C. viminalis cultivar and definitely needs the heat, 8b in the PNW/BC is probably too cold. They would do fine in Z9a and upwards in the Southwest where they would get more warmth in summer. They have no issues with the humidity either and are very common on the gulf coast in Z9a/b. 

[Chester B]

On 7/31/2022 at 5:51 PM, thyerr01 said:

I agree with @Manalto. 'Little John' is a C. viminalis cultivar and definitely needs the heat, 8b in the PNW/BC is probably too cold. They would do fine in Z9a and upwards in the Southwest where they would get more warmth in summer. They have no issues with the humidity either and are very common on the gulf coast in Z9a/b. 

For whatever reason just about every nursery carries Little John here in Portland, Oregon. Any other varieties/species you have to go to local specialty nurseries.

We tend to be quite a bit hotter than WA and BC so I’m thinking Portland and south should be ok. I saw my neighbors backyard for the first time and he had what looked like a mature Little John. About 3 foot tall and 4 foot wide. Definitely not a Woodlanders hardy red which is the second most common one here. I bought a Little John this year so we’ll see how it fares.