Celebrating Prickly Paperbark
Melaleuca styphelioides
Its leaves may be a bit prickly to handle but the tree makes up for it in flaky, flapping, buzzing-ness!
This tree will literally hum with life when it’s in flower as every bee, butterfly & nectar eating bird will visit for breakfast, lunch & dinner.
It also has really cool bark that flakes off in big papery sheets, the prickly leaves can be crushed & sniffed to relieve a cold or steeped as a tea.
It’s also very tough & drought tolerant when established.
H: 8-10m W: 6-8m the wide bushy canopy makes it a great shade tree often planted as street trees & in parks.
Abundant white flowers appear in spring/summer.