Callistemon citrinus Mauve Mist - Bottlebrush

Callistemon citrinus 'Mauve Mist' is an excellent bush for gardens with mild winters. With a lovely dense and compact habit, slightly weeping with age, it is appreciated for its dazzling flowering in clusters of beautiful mauve mist pink on light green foliage, which follows its young shoots tinged with red, during a long summer period. Its evergreen foliage, particularly tough, gives off a scent that curiously resembles that of the lemon-scented Eucalyptus, its cousin in the myrtle family. Its modest size for the genus, its attractive habit, its attractive foliage all year round, and its long flowering make it an excellent terrace plant, in any region. It shines in the center of an exotic bed in mild climates.

Callistemon citrinus is an evergreen bush in the myrtle family, related to myrtles and Leptospermum, native to Australia like them. Callistemons are mostly riverside plants that appreciate well-drained, fresh soils, without excess limestone, and occasionally even dry soils, but also abundant and occasional watering to support their flowering. Its species name, citrinus, refers to the particular smell of its foliage.

The 'Mauve Mist' cultivar has a more compact habit, not exceeding 2.50m (8ft 2in) in height and 2m (6ft 7in) in width. It is a bush for mild climates, with brittle wood, forming a rounded bush with a slightly spreading habit, composed of flexible branches. Its growth is rather fast. Its linear and narrow foliage is divided into leaflets that are 5cm (2in) long and 1cm (0.4in) wide. They are tinged with salmon red when they bud, become light green, and then bright green. The young leaves produced at the end of summer retain their reddish-orange colour throughout winter. Its inflorescences appear at the end of the branches, just above the young leaves. They are composed of very long mauve stamens, which become paler over time, and are gathered in cylindrical spikes. These inflorescences are 5cm (2in) wide and about 10cm (3.9in) long, and hang slightly. The terminal bud develops several times new leaves, then new clusters, while the old inflorescence produces small, very hard fruits in the shape of a cupule, embedded in the bark. The flowering can occur from June to August-September in cool and moist soil and in warm climates, especially in late summer. It is also a plant that attracts many pollinating insects to the garden.

Hardy to about -7°C/-8°C, the 'Mauve Mist' Callistemon withstands summer drought quite well once established, but appreciates watering in dry climates. In a greenhouse or conservatory, it will create an extremely decorative quartet with an orange tree, a Tibouchina, or a Mimosa, evoking landscapes with exotic charm and scents. On the Mediterranean coast or in a medium to warm Atlantic climate, it can be used as a standalone plant - it deserves it - in the center of a bed, or as an informal hedge, associated with Grevillea, Phormium, Caesalpinia gillesii, Leptospermum, Melaleuca. It can also be planted in an evergreen hedge, accompanied by a shrubby Ceanothus ('Italian Skies', 'Concha', 'Puget Blue', 'Skylark'...), a spring-flowering broom, or Oleanders (Nerium oleander 'Soleil Levant' or 'Provence'). Its good tolerance to salt allows for coastal exposure, facing wind and spray.