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Malvaceae
Illawarra Flame Tree
Brachychiton acerifolius
Australian spring, dramatic transformation, fiery awakening.
- Family
- Malvaceae
- Genus
- Brachychiton
- Native to
- Eastern Australia
- Bloom season
- Spring, Early-Summer
- Type
- Tree
- Height
- 20–35 m (65–115 ft)
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil
- Rich, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Hardiness
- 9–11
- Lifespan
- Long-lived (100+ years)
Did you know
- Before blooming, the Illawarra flame tree drops every single leaf—then bursts into bell-shaped scarlet flowers covering the bare branches, creating an entire 100-foot tree on fire.
- It's notoriously erratic about flowering—a tree might skip blooming for several years, then suddenly produce a full season of glory after a particularly hot, dry winter.
- The seeds are surrounded by tiny irritating hairs that look like glass fibers—Aboriginal Australians traditionally collected the seeds carefully and roasted them as a protein-rich food.
- Though it can reach over 100 feet tall in its rainforest habitat, the Illawarra flame tree drops branches as it grows older, eventually becoming a single tall trunk with a high crown.
- It's a star street tree of Sydney, where it appears in countless 19th-century botanical illustrations and has become a symbol of Australian springtime.
Color meanings
0
Australian spring
1
dramatic transformation
2
fiery awakening