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In Bloom

Leptospermum Spp. is located in the Australia Garden (60A, 60B), New Zealand Garden (66A, 66B) and the Western Australia Garden (47). Leptospermum scoparium "Helene Strybing" can be found around the fountain plaza (27H, 27I).

Location Scientific Name Leptospermum spp. Family Myrtaceae Plant Type Evergreen shrub Environment Well-drained, fertile, acid soil. Does best where night temperatures are cool and can tolerate full sun and dry conditions near the coast, needs summer water inland Bloom Casual, often showy flowers year round. L. scoparium 'Helene Strybing' sports single, slightly larger, deep pink blooms Uses Useful landscape structure plants, fragrant foliage. Can be used for tea, but is not very palatable. Flowers are good bee forage and the resulting honey has antibacterial properties. Common "tea tree oil" is derived from another plant, Melaleuca More Info Australian National Botanic Garden's history and species information How to plant Australian Tea Trees Latest research on Leptospermum honey used medicinally

There are many old tea trees in Golden Gate Park and other parks in San Francisco. They were imported from Australia about one hundred years ago to stabilize the sand dunes. Many were planted under the pines and cypresses along Lincoln Way. Look closely and you will see the crawling, twisting trunks of Leptospermum laevigatum forming the understory.

New Zealand has its own species, L. scoparium, which stands erect with pink to deep rose five-petal flowers with multiple stamens. There are several varieties at SFBG: prostrate types (outside the Fragrance Garden) and taller trees on the axis leading from the fountain to the Zellerbach garden. One special highlight for SFBG are the L. scoparium 'Helene Strybing' growing around the fountain plaza. You can identify these by their noticeably bigger pink flowers.

Leptospermums have a long history of medicinal application starting with the Maori, who used them to treat a variety of ailments from colic to rheumatism. Captain Cook, the great explorer of the Pacific, named them “tea trees”, for he learned that a daily tea made from their leaves kept his sailors from succumbing to scurvy, enabling his ships to remain at sea for years. All tea trees have rich nectar that bees transform into a dark honey. Manuka honey is recognized for its unique antibacterial and antifungal properties and is used in hospitals in wound dressings.

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Magnolia campbellii January	Magnolia denudata February	Magnolia x veitchii March
Iris douglasiana April

Acer palmatum 'Sango kaku' January	Magnolia campbellii 'Darjeeling' February	Bomarea spp. March
Rhododendron occidentale April	Polystichum munitum May	x Chiranthofremontia lenzii June
Salvia leucantha July	Hydrangea seemannii August	Wollemia nobilis September
Cyathea cooperi October	Pinus radiata November	Correa spp. December

Garrya elliptica January	Magnolia x soulangeana February	Senecio glastifolius March
Ribes spp. April	Oxalis oregana May	Calandrinia grandiflora June
Taxus baccata July	Romneya coulteri August	Passiflora parritae September
Malvaviscus arboreus October	Monterey Cypress November	Aloe arborescens December

Aloe plicatilis January	Banksia seminuda February	Zantedeschia aethiopica March
Magnolia laevifolia April	Araucaria heterophylla May	Toxicodendron diversilobum June
Clarkia sp. July	Agapanthus August	Brugmansia September
Cedrus spp. October	Protea repens November	Camellia sinensis December

Thujopsis dolabrata January	Gordonia longicarpa February	Rojasianthe superba March
Echium spp. April	Iris douglasiana May	Digitalis purpurea June
Felicia amelloides July	Ceroxylon quindiuense August	Amaryllis belladonna September
Ginkgo biloba October	Acer morrisonense November	Ilex aquifolium December

Picea sitchensis January	Telanthophora grandifolia February	Aeonium arboreum 'Schwartzkopf' March
Leptospermum April	Salvia gesneraeflora May	Lavandula spp. June
Pelargonium July	Fuchsia paniculata August	Luma apiculata September
Luculia October	Arbutus unedo November	Cycad December

Restionaceae January	Hellebores February	Ceanothus March
Rhododendron April	Psoralea pinnata May	Fremontodendron californicum June
Leucadendron argenteum July	Crocosmia August	Gunnera tinctoria September
Pellaea rotundifolia October	Fuchsia boliviana November	Erica canaliculata December

Magnolia campbelli January	Magnolia denudata February	Camellia March
Geranium maderense April	Acmena smithii May	Eschscholzia californica June
Dendromecon harfordii July	Romneya coulteri August	Eupatorium purpureum September
Epilobium canum sp. October	Grevillea spp. November	Drimys winteri December