Bottlebrush

Callistemon citrinus

Resilience, fiery passion, the Australian wild.

Did you know

The flower spikes look exactly like cylindrical bottle brushes, with hundreds of long red stamens packed tightly together — the petals themselves are tiny.
Bottlebrush flowers are pollinated by birds, especially honeyeaters and lorikeets, which feed on the abundant nectar.
Like many Australian natives, bottlebrush seeds are released from woody fruits only after exposure to fire — a fire-dependent reproductive strategy.
Crushed leaves smell strongly of lemon and have been used in folk medicine and as an insect repellent.
Bottlebrush is so widely planted as a street tree that it's become a familiar sight in warm climates worldwide, including California, the Mediterranean, and South Africa.