Callistemon citrinus (Crimson Bottlebrush)

Callistemon citrinus

Callistemon citrinus (Curtis) Skeels

Melaleuca citrina (Curtis) Dum. Cours.

Callistemon lanceolatus (Sw.) DC.

Crimson Bottlebrush, Bottlebrush

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Myrtales	Includes myrtles, leadwoods, loosestrifes, pomegranates, evening primroses, many others
Family	Myrtaceae	Myrtle family, include myrtle, clove, guava, feijoa, allspice, and eucalyptus
Genus	Callistemon	From the Greek kalli or kallos, “beautiful,” and stemon, a stamen, in reference to the extraordinary beauty of the flowers of this genus
Species	citrinus	Lemon yellow

About plant names...

Tall shrubs or small trees, red bottlebrushes have bright red flowers that really do look exactly like bottlebrushes. Most of the 34 species of Callistemon originate from Australia; a few are from New Caledonia. In the extreme southern and western United States they are popular ornamental plants, but they have not become naturalized in North America.

Identification: The red filaments in bottlebrush “flowers” are really the flowers, they are the stamens. The flowers themselves are in the core, small and white. The key identifying characteristic of these plants is the cylindrical shape of the brushes. Plants are 6-15' (1.8-4.6 m) high. The seeds are unusual, and remain on the trees for long periods.

Bottlebrush seeds. By Fir0002/Flagstaffotos.

Online References:

Callistemon citrinus on floridata.com

Callistemon citrinus on Wikipedia

Callistemon citrinus on extension.msstate.edu

Callistemon citrinus at the Australian Native Plants Society

Callistemon citrinus on Desert-tropicals.com

Callistemon citrinus at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences

Callistemon citrinus on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Callistemon citrinus at the University of Connecticut Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Plant Growth Facilities

Callistemon citrinus description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

4/12/2015 · Florida City, FL ID is uncertain

4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, MD
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, MD
≈ 7 × 4½" (17 × 11 cm)

4/12/2015 · Florida City, FL
≈ 5½ × 5½' (1.6 × 1.6 m) ID is uncertain

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, AZ
≈ 5 × 6" (13 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, AZ
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm) ID is uncertain

4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, MD
≈ 7 × 4½" (17 × 11 cm)

4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, MD
≈ 6 × 9" (14 × 22 cm)

4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, MD
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

Range: Zones 8b-11:

About this map...