Melaleuca citrina (Curtis) Dum. Cours.
Callistemon citrinus (Curtis) Skeels
Crimson bottlebrush, bottlebrush
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.
Plants: 6–15′ (1.8–4.6 m) high.
Leaves: Lanceolate to narrow-elliptic leaves are up to 3″ (7.6 cm) long, coppery in color at first before maturing to medium green. Leaves have a lemony scent when bruised.
Flowers: 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.
Fruits: The seeds are unusual, and remain on the trees for long periods.
Habitats: Near coasts, in swamps and along creeks and rivers.
Online References:
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm) 
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm) 
5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona
ID is uncertain 
5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona · ≈ 6 × 5″ (15 × 13 cm)
ID is uncertain 
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm) 
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland · ≈ 6 × 9″ (14 × 22 cm) 
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| 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 |
Callistemon citrinus description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.