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Greyia sutherlandii

Natal bottlebrush

Plant photo of: Greyia sutherlandii
Information by: Jerry Sortomme Editor        Photographer:

 

Description

Greyia sutherlandii is a large shrub or small tree, 10-20 ft high. It is deciduous and in late autumn the leaves turn shades of bright red. Young trees are compact and old trees do not grow tall but they spread and have rough, dark trunks. The leaves are simple, alternate, rather leathery, slightly lobed and coarsely toothed. The leaf surface is hairless and minutely glandular. The leaf veins radiate from the base. The leaf stalk is long and straight. The beautiful flowers are red, with oblong petals and long protruding stamens. The showy flowers open in closely packed racemes at the tips of the branches and bloom at the end of winter and early spring. The fruit is a pale brown, cone-shaped, cylindrical capsule, of 20 mm long. It splits in 4 or 5 parts when ripe to release seeds from October to December. The wood is pale pink and generally light and soft.

 

Sun

Full

Water

Low

Growth Rate

Fast

Soil Type

Sandy, Clay, Loam, Rocky, Unparticular

Soil Condition

Average, Poor, Well-drained

Soil pH

Neutral, Basic

Adverse Factors

Attracts Bees

Water Saving Tip:

Replace turf with groundcovers, trees, and shrubs.

If you have areas where no one uses the grass, patches that do not grow well, or a turf area too small to water without runoff, consider replacing the turf with water-efficient landscaping.