Peach blossom tea-tree

Appearance

''Leptospermum squarrosum'' is an erect shrub of variable habit, growing to a height of less than 1 m to 4 m or more and has thin, firm bark. Young stem are silky-hairy at first, soon glabrous. The leaves are variable but mostly broadly lance-shaped to elliptical, 5–15 mm long and 2–5 mm wide with a sharply-pointed tip and tapering to a short petiole.

The flowers are white or pink, mostly 10–20 mm wide and arranged singly on short side shoots. The floral cup is sessile, 2.5–4 mm long and glabrous. The sepals are also glabrous, 2–3 mm long, the five petals 3–7 mm long and the stamens 3–4 mm long. Flowering mostly occurs from March to April and the fruit is a capsule mostly 8–12 mm wide that remain on the plant at maturity.

Distribution

Peach blossom tea-tree gows in shrubland on sandstone soils in coastal areas and nearby tablelands of New South Wales, but especially in the Sydney region.

Cultural

This tea-tree is a hardy shrub that grows best in a sunny situation in well-drained soil, but is salt-resistant and tolerates exposed positions.