The ultimate guide to Australian native flowers

Desert Flame is a perennial Australian native that brings a blaze of colour to the garden with golden yellow flowers and silvery grey foliage. It’s a hardy, maintenance plant that provides stunning ground cover and can grow 20–30cm tall. It prefers temperate climates and grows best in full sun or part shade and most soil types.

Care requirements

Full sun; sandy, well-draining soil. Take care not to overwater.

Grown all over Australia, grevilleas are fuss-free, native shrubs that flower profusely! They come in a great range of sizes, from ground covers and mid-sized shrubs to tall screening plants, which are perfect for privacy. Their year-round flowers are also simply irresistible to native birds and insects. 

Care requirements

Full sun; sandy, well-draining soil. Keep sheltered from strong winds.

Absolutely stunning when in bloom, evergreen when not, the popular native kangaroo paw is an ideal low-maintenance but high-impact plant. And fun fact – the Anigozanthos is the state flower of Western Australia. 

All species have strap-like leaves and tubular flowers, you can find them in single, bi-coloured and even tri-coloured forms, in red, yellow, green, orange, pink and near-white. 

Care requirements

Full sun; free-draining, slightly acidic, sandy soil.

Correa or ‘Canberra Bells’ produces a mass of red and cream bell-shaped flowers throughout autumn on a compact shrub to 1m. Frost and drought hardy, correas are sometimes referred to as native fuchsias and are one of the most reliable native shrubs for autumn colour.

This Australian native flower is great in a mixed garden bed or as a low growing hedge; prune lightly after flowering to maintain a neat compact shape.

Care requirements

Shade to full sun; withstands most soil conditions although prefers free-draining, sandy soil. Protect from strong winds.

The Australian native Dendrobium kingianum, or pink rock lily, is a type of orchid that is tough and easy to grow, producing delicate flowers from pure white through to pink and purple. Australian native dendrobiums will thrive on rock faces or attached to tree branches in filtered light. On the other end of the spectrum is the striking Cooktown orchid with round, long-lasting flowers. And there are many more in this huge genus. 

Care requirements

Dappled sunlight; tropical varities prefer humid climates. During the hotter months, a weekly feed of one-quarter strength fertiliser will ensure robust healthy growth, but as the weather starts to cool, ease off the watering and fertiliser.

Westringia comes in many different varieties, all with beautiful little native flowers. The ‘Aussie Box’ is a newer form of the popular shrub that makes a lovely low hedge. Growing to about 60 x 60cm, it’s drought-hardy and produces tiny mauve flowers on and off throughout the year.

Care requirements

Full sun to light shade; suits most soil types and tolerates frost and drought.

Lilly pilly – also known as an Australian cherry – is an evergreen tree that has glossy leaves and fragrant white flowers in summer before producing edible red or purple fruit.

It’s a popular hedge option as it quite dense and can be trimmed and ‘topiaried’ to your heart’s content.

Care requirements

Full sun, tolerates some shade; free-draining acidic to neutral soil, protect from heavy frost.

The bottlebrushes gets its name from the vibrant flower arrangements it produces, which closely resembles a bottle cleaning brush. Tree shapes and sizes vary considerably, with the flower colours ranging from reds and pinks to whites, so there’s one suitable for just about any garden.

Bottlebrushes are a hardy, low-maintenance plant, which can do well (and even thrive) in damp conditions. Bursting into bloom from early spring, bottlebrush delivers rich pickings for birds.

Care requirements

Full sun; prefers well-draining soil, but can tolerate clay. Tolerant of a wide range of conditions, including drought, wet feet and coastal salt.

The leaves and branches of this loose-spreading shrub are covered with short silver hairs, which create a fabulous shimmery gleam in the garden. Native to Australia, it’s one of the best silver-leaved plants to use in shady areas. 

Care requirements

Partial to full sun; free draining, moderately rich soil. Take care not to overwater. Prune regularly to encourage tidy, fuller growth.

Loved for their flower spikes in gold, red and orange, banksias flower profusely and for an extended period. They come in various forms, from medium-sized shrubs to spreading groundcovers, and make eye-catching arrangements for events like parties, weddings and funerals.

For example, ‘Giant Candles’ is a favourite as it produces large flower spikes on a 4m tall shrub. For lower growing options, check out dwarf varieties of banksia, such as ‘Cherry Candles’. It has a spreading habit of 1.5–2m – great for pots or in ground.

Care requirements

Full sun; well-draining soil or native potting mix. Feed with a controlled-release fertiliser formulated for natives.

A generous bloomer, common heath (Epacris impressa) flowers almost year-round, but is most profuse in winter. While the pink variety is a favourite, flower colour varies from white to deep crimson.

It grows up to 1m tall and wide, but commonly remains a 50cm shrub in gardens.

Care requirements

Full sun or part shade; well-draining sandy soil. Prune after floweing to maintain bushy shape.

Chorizema has orange, pink and red flowers in winter and early spring. This plant is versatile enough that you could let it sprawl across garden beds, use it as a groundcover or support it to grow as a climber. It grows 1–1.5m high and wide, but you can contain it with a light trim.

Flame peas are among a group of many, many flowers that bloom to life in Western Australia during wildflower season.

Care requirements

Dappled sunlight; prefers moist, well-draining soil. Cut back hard after flowering to maintain a tidy form.

With star-shaped flowers in white or pink, croweas are available as low-growing groundcovers or compact shrubs. Growing 20cm–1.5m high and spreading 75cm – 1.5m, they make great border plants.

Look for large-flowering Crowea exalata ‘Southern Stars’. It has dainty blooms and purple stems.

Care requirements

Partial sun; well-draining soil. Prune lightly after flowering finishes.

The Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha) variety is the national flower of Australia. Wattles live life in the fast lane, growing rapidly from seed and producing stunning yellow flowers from a young age. Wattles grow happily in any sunny to semi-shaded spot.

They have good tolerance to extremes of both heat and cold, however, if your garden is prone to heavy winter frosts, it’s worth planting species indigenous to your area, as these will be the most robust growers. Wattles aren’t fussy about soil types but do need it to be free draining, so don’t plant in soggy spots that are slow to drain after heavy rainfall.

Care requirements

Semi-shade to full sun; free draining soil. Tip pruning directly after flowering will keep wattle plant bushy and prolong its life.

The waratah is one of the most beautiful and instantly recognisable Australian native wildflowers. As well as being the floral emblem of New South Wales, the bold, usually blood-red flower heads are held above striking foliage, shining like beacons in the bush during spring.

The type that most people know is Telopea speciosissima, the New South Wales waratah, and its hybrid forms.

Care requirements

Part sun; free-draining, slightly acidic soil. Waratahs will not tolerate wet feet, so avoid planting in clay soil. Protect from wind.

Sturt’s desert pea is the floral emblem for South Australia, famous for its eye-catching blood-red petals, each with a black pea-like centre. They are notoriously difficult to grow at home.

Care requirements

Full sun; perfectly draining sandy soil. Prefers aridd or Mediterranean climate.

The striking yellow flowers on Billy Buttons have made these Australian native flowers popular with florists and gardeners alike. They were even spotted in serial renovators Josh and Jenna’s country garden. They make great bouquets and will add a pop of colour to any garden, typically flowering in spring and early summer.

According to NSW National Parks, you can also spot Billy Buttons in the wild in Kosciuszko National Park, as well as “dry forest, grassland and alpine regions”.

Care requirements

Full sun to dappled sun; adaptable to most soil types. Use controlled-release native fertiliser in spring and summer.

Australian fan flowers produce a mass of beautiful flowers, typically from spring through to autumn. These natives work well as groundcover but could also be more shrub-like and suited to pots or hanging baskets.

Care requirements

Full sun; well-draining soil. Feed in summer with controlled-release fertiliser for native plants.

Pigface is a common sight on sand dunes and other beachy areas around Australia. But it’s also been planted in public spaces and is an easy native to grow in most types of soil. As a succulent, it’s drought-tolerant and also has edible leaves.

Care requirements

Full sun; well-draining sandy or rocky soil. Water sparingly only when soil is dry.

There are plenty of different varieties of native Brachyscome or Australian daisy. One of the most popular varieties is the Swan River Daisy (Brachyscome iberidifolia), which has bright, beautiful flowers that range in colour from white to purple and blue.

It’s found in the wild in Western Australia, South Australia and some parts of the Northern Territory but is also in gardens all over the country as it’s relatively easy to grow. And like all Australian native flowers, it’s great for attracting birds and bees.

Care requirements

Full sun; well-draining soil. Cut flowers back regularly to promote more blooms.