Scarlet Bottlebrush

Drama is just a shovel away when you add this Scarlet Bottlebrush (Callistemon citrinus) to your landscape. You'll love the showy look that elevates your yard without much effort on your part.

If you need a fancy accent specimen at the corner of your foundation planting, Scarlet Bottlebrush is an ideal choice.

Plant several 5 feet apart to create a dramatic, exciting and carefree screen or hedge. You’ll measure from the center of one to the center of the next. Buying larger plants to start will save you time waiting for your hedge to grow together.

There is a great reason why people love using this plant in their landscapes. Scarlet Bottlebrush provides a commanding amount of visual interest all year long.

More importantly, this evergreen shrub is also wonderfully easy care. Even if your thumb is less than green, this pretty shrub can deliver a star performance for you.

You'll fall fast and hard for its bottle brush-shaped flowers, with their vibrant red color and contrasting tips. The flowers light up when the setting sun hits them, so try to site plantings to the west of your house or outdoor seating area, if you can.

Another fabulous way to use Scarlet Bottlebrush is as a container plant. If you’re in Zones 9 – 10, you can keep container gardens out all year long. Try them up into Zone 5 as a seasonal container “Thriller” that NO ONE else will have on their property.

Also known as the Lemon Bottlebrush, the leaves emit a fresh fragrance when you brush against them on very hot days. Grab a vase and bring cuttings inside for display. You’ll enjoy the wonderful scent inside your house.

Plant a blockbuster in your landscape. Order Scarlet Bottlebrush today!

How to use Scarlet Bottlebrush in the Landscape

This is a versatile plant. It works handsomely in many different garden applications, which is so important when choosing plants.

Use for a small patio tree. Grab your loppers and study the young plant. Select the best “trunks” to keep and then prune away everything else. You can use 1, 3 or 4 trunks. It all depends on the look you want and the space you have.

Not quite ready for your closeup? Let all the branches grow. The plant will develop into a full, lush privacy screen.

Ideal for containers, grow the Scarlet Bottlebrush as a flowering patio container tree or shrub. In the colder climate zones of 5-8, the Scarlet Bottlebrush can be brought into a well-lit indoor location like a sunroom or greenhouse to overwinter.

The tropical-looking Scarlet Bottlebrush offers a profusion of fluffy carmine-red blooms. You can’t miss them!

The Scarlet Bottlebrush, like many divas, loves the sun, so plant in a location that receives plenty of sunlight, flowering can be affected by any amount of shade.

The flowers look lovely in a vase, too, which is why they're often found next to or even inside a cutting garden, so you can plant them where you can pick a few to bring indoors.

Partner Scarlet Bottlebrush with other Mediterranean and waterwise-type plants such as Agave, Strawberry Tree, Sedum, Aloe and Maiden Grass.

#ProPlantTips for Care

Scarlet Bottlebrush tolerates a wide range of soils. It delivers the best performance in acidic, well-drained soils. Use an acid fertilizer like Dr. Earth Acids Lovers Organic and Premium Fertilizer. Simply feed your plant in the spring to maintain good soil pH.

Resistance to heat and drought once it's established make Scarlet Bottlebrush a “plant it and forget it" kind of plant. Give it a layer of mulch to cover the root system for even more resiliency.

Scarlet Bottlebrush takes to pruning very well. You can prune to shape it at any time of the year. Snip wayward branches or keep your tree-formed plant in tip-top shape with regular haircuts now and then.

This is a plant to have fun with! Enjoy it in your yard. Order today!