Worth knowing:
The evergreen Red Bottle Brush impresses with its flashy, brush-like and cylinder shaped inflorenscences with long filaments that constantly grow again from late spring until autumn. When kept in a pot or tub, it can easily be pruned strongly to achieve the desired height of the plant. The alternate, leathery leaves - revealing the belonging to the Myrtle plants - are silvery haired after proliferation and have a light aromatic citrus scent when ground. For that, in Australia, the leaves are sometimes added to tea, to create a fresher aroma.
Natural Location:
The natural habitat of the bush that is also known as Carmine Top Hat Brush, is in the southeastern states of Australia, that is New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. There, it can be found in the swamps close the coast and along rocky watercourses.
Cultivation:
Seed propagation indoors is possible throughout the year. Spread the seeds on moist potting compost, put just a little compost earth on top and cover the seed container with clear film to prevent the earth from drying out. Don’t forget to make some holes in the clear film and take it every second or third day completely off for about 2 hours. That way you avoid mold formation on your potting compost. Place the seed container somewhere bright and warm with a temperature between 20°C and 25° Celsius and keep the earth moist, but not wet. The germination starts after six to eight weeks. Later on, you have also the possibility of propagation from cuttings, by using the 10 cm long, one year old blind side shoots with a piece of the old stem as base.
Place:
The Red Bottle Brush prefers a sunny spot near a window to the south or a bit wind-sheltered place on your balcony or in the garden.
Care:
During growth and blossoming you should give plenty of lime-deficient water (rain water), but avoid water logging, for instance in the saucer. From late spring until autumn the plant needs fluid fertilizer for tub plants every two weeks. Trim back spent branches to support the new shoots.
During the winter:
In autumn, you have to move your plant indoors before the nightly temperatures sink below 10° Celsius. During winter it is best to be kept bright and cool with temperatures between 5° and 10° Celsius. This break is supportive for next year’s budding. Water your plant less, but see that the clotted roots are not drying out. In February, the pot can already be moved to a sunny and warm place for an early blooming.
Picture credits:
- © © Peter A. Mansfeld - CC-BY-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Peter A. Mansfeld - CC-BY-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
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