Roger's Tree Pick for February: Callistemon

The Callistemon (“kuh-LIS-tuh-mon”) family is made up of about 30 different species of trees and shrubs. They all come from “Down Under” and are known as the Australian bottlebrushes. They are botanical, gathered into the large Myrtaceae family, of which there are volumes of other plants from that specific genus.

One of the many bottlebrushes grown in California, Callistemon citrinus (lanceolatus), referred to as the lemon bottlebrush, has been a main staple in California gardens for years and is very hardy in a wide spectrum of conditions with no significant pest problems.

Easily adapted to most adverse soils, wind and water, it is also amazingly tolerant of both heat and cold.

This bottlebrush species, although fairly small, can be trained into a lovely small tree form of 15 feet or so in time. In the early 1990s some were planted here in town along Fallbrook Street, parallel to the Senior Center parking lot, and have been doing just grandly with minimum attention.

The new leaves are pinkish-copper in color and go on to become vividly green. Usually it blooms conspicuously in mid-winter, then intermittently throughout the year.

Callistemon viminalis, the weeping bottlebrush, is also a small evergreen tree with low-sweeping pendent branches softly clothed in narrow, light-green leaves. The flowers hang in dense spikes of pure red, soft and brush-like, encircling the ends of slender branches in brilliant profusion.

This tree may break into full display of color at any season and be a real knockout in the right setting. After a flush of flowers, the tree will rest for six weeks or so, preparing again for another colorful show.

Callistemon trees need some juvenile staking and pruning to obtain straight and sturdy supportive trunks, for their canopies can be fairly top-heavy in the developmental and establishment years.

Also, remember to check the rubber ties on the trees’ trunks as they develop. I have seen too many trees where folks forgot about the stakes and ties, which are only temporary and should be removed with age. If not, the stakes can cause scarring or girdling and create open wounds to the bark by the wind blowing and rubbing the stake against the trunk.

Callistemon salignus, the willow bottlebrush or white bottlebrush, comes from the coastal region in Queensland, Australia. The name salignus means “resembling a willow” and is another great addition to a California-style drought-tolerant garden.

The value of Callistemon is that they give us wonderful color in their blossoms, can be small trees for small gardens and are a good attractant for hummingbirds and bees as pollinators. The willow tree variety aided by the slight touch of wind can stimulate a visual rhythm to the eye and create a wispy look to any setting.

One must also remember to keep woody trees and shrubs away from the house when practicing the art of firescaping.

Some bottlebrushes are naturally dense and compact, making them good for screening and hedgerows. Those with pliant branches can be grown as informal espaliers on walls or fences and can be works of art with skillful pruning and time.

There are many shrub forms used out in the garden as well and new introductions of cultivars coming online each year, such as “Little John,” a superior dwarf form to three feet tall and wide; it has blood-red flowers in fall, winter and spring.

“Captain Cook” is also a dense, rounded form to six feet and suitable for low hedges or a living screen. “Jeffersii” has striking violet-colored flowers and is quite a show of color in the right place.

So if you are looking for a family of plants in both shrub or tree forms for your garden setting, the bottlebrushes certainly can fit the bill and are adaptable to a wide range of conditions here in Southern California.

Spring is just around the corner, so pay attention to the wonderful flowering trees coming into bloom and keep a special lookout for one of my favorite trees, the redbud.

Right now in my garden I have a forest of double red flowering peach blossoms just bursting into color. It’s enough to knock your socks off.

White flowering ornamental pears are also spectacular right now throughout the southland.

“When I walk under the canopy of a beautiful flowering tree, melodious thoughts of wonder descend upon me and etch their way into my spirit and I count my blessings.”

Roger Boddaert, a horticultural landscape designer, can be reached at (760) 728-4297.