Native plant species
Brisbane City Council offers a variety of plants through the Free Native Plants Program, suitable for all garden types and sizes. Descriptions, growing conditions and fauna attracting information will help you choose the plants most suitable for your garden. Every plant adds to our city's urban forest, supports our unique wildlife and makes Brisbane cleaner, greener and more sustainable.
While Council endeavours to supply the variety of plant species on offer throughout the year, due to seasonal availability this is not always possible. If any species is not available at the time of request, it will be substituted with a similar plant type and size available through the Free Native Plants Program.
Note: information contained on this page is intended as a guide only.
Groundcovers
| Species | Description and growing requirements | Attracts |
|---|---|---|
| Cut Leaf Daisy (Brachyscome multifida) | Hardy eye-catching ground cover to 60 centimetres with purple daisy flowers throughout the year. Best grown well drained soils in full sun. Especially effective in rockeries, mass plantings, pots, hanging baskets and borders | Bees, lizards |
| Creeping Boobialla (Myoporum sp.) | Hardy prostrate groundcover that grows to 1 metre. Purple or white flowers during the summer months. An excellent spreading groundcover for a sunny well-drained position. Suitable in pots or containers. | Birds, lizards |
| Fan Flower (Scaevola aemula) | Spreading groundcover that grows to 60 centimetres with dark green foliage and small mauve-pink flowers in spring and summer. Prefers well-drained soils. Great for hanging baskets. | Bees, lizards |
| Native Violet (Viola banksii) | Attractive dense groundcover that grows to 15 centimetres suitable for damp shady areas. Small, round, light green leaves with violet flowers throughout the year. Ideal for rockeries, mass plantings, pots and hanging baskets. | Lizards, frogs |
Tufting plants and grasses
| Species | Description and growing requirements | Attracts |
|---|---|---|
| Blue Flax (Dianella caerulea) | Hardy plant with long, strappy leaves that grows to 45 centimetres. Blue flowers on branched spikes appear in spring. Bright blue berries occur after flowering. Prefers a sunny position in well-drained soil. | Birds, lizards |
| Knobby Club Rush (Ficinia nodosa) | Tough, fast-growing, spreading, tufting grass with upright, dark green foliage up to 1 metre. Grows best in a full sun position. Brownish flower heads are produced on spikes throughout the year. Great plant for water features, ponds and effective in mass planting or containers. | Birds, frogs, lizards |
| Mat Rush (Lomandra sp.) | Deep green, glossy, narrow strap leaves to 1 metre. Small yellow-cream flowers in spring and summer. Grow in a full sun to partial shade position. | Lizards, frogs |
Climbers
| Species | Description and growing requirements | Attracts |
|---|---|---|
| Guinea Vine (Hibbertia scandens) | A vigorous twiner with glossy, dark green leaves and large, golden yellow flowers over spring and summer. Grows to 3 metres and makes an excellent screening plant on walls or fences. Prefers well-drained soil. Grow in full sun to partial shade in an open position. Suitable for tubs and containers or as a groundcover. | Birds |
| Pandorea (Pandorea sp.) | A hardy, vigorous, fast growing, evergreen twining plant with bell-shaped pink or white flowers in spring followed by large oblong shaped seed pods. Spreads up to 6 metres. Prefers an open, sunny position in well-drained soil. Great as a screening plant on a fence or trellis. Will grow in a large pot. | Butterflies, bees, insects |
| Sarsaparilla Vine (Hardenbergia sp.) | Fast growing, low maintenance, heavy flowering climber with dark green leathery leaves. Grows to 3 metres. Long lasting dark purple flowers, appear over winter and spring. Plant in a full sun to semi-shade position in a well-drained soil. Plant to trail over fences for privacy, retaining walls or on a trellis. Will grow in a large pot. Stunning when mass planted. | Bees, Birds, butterflies, insects |
Small shrubs - 0.5 metres to two metres
| Species | Description and growing requirements | Attracts |
|---|---|---|
| Bottlebrush (Callistemon sp.) | Fast growing, hardy, woody shrub that grows up to two metres that produces beautiful blooms in a variety of single colours in spring and summer and sometimes again in autumn. Plant in a moist, well-drained, sunny position. Regularly prune to encourage bushier growth and increased flower production. Great for containers, edging, rockeries, hedges and borders. | Birds, insects |
| Coastal Rosemary (Westringia sp.) | Hardy, small, fast-growing, evergreen shrub that grows to 1m². Long flowering and suitable as a hedge or screening plant or for low maintenance gardens, exposed sites and coastal gardens. Suitable for container planting. | Birds, butterflies, insects |
| Grevillea (Grevillea sp.) | Showy, evergreen plants that grow to two metres with nectar-rich flowers. They produce a 'spider flower' in a variety of single colours throughout the year. Grevilleas do best in a sunny position with light, gritty, free-draining soil. | Birds, bees, butterflies |
| Lilly Pilly (Syzygium sp.) | Hardy evergreen plants to two metres with glossy, green leaves with fluffy, pom-pom, white or pink flowers in spring and summer followed by pink or red berries. Prefers a sunny position with well-drained soil. Lilly Pillies make excellent screens, windbreaks and hedges and can be pruned to size and shape. | Birds, bees |
| Swamp Banksia (Banksia robur) | Hardy, evergreen shrub to two metres with bold flowing spikes in a variety of single colours. Flowers appear from autumn through to spring. Plant in an open, sunny position in well-drained soil. To encourage flower production and thicker foliage, cut flowering spikes and use in a floral display. | Birds, bees, butterflies, insects |
| Tea Tree (Leptospermum sp.) | Attractive small shrub ranging in size from 80 centimetres up to two metres. Showy pink or white flowers in spring and autumn. Prefers moist well-drained soil in full sun or light shade. A useful feature plant for rockeries or over retaining walls. | Insects, bees |
| Thyme Honey Myrtle (Melaleuca thymifolia) | Small hardy shrub to 1m². Mauve claw type flowers occur in clusters and are borne during summer. Grows best in full sun with good drainage. Suitable for large pots or containers. | Insects |
Medium shrubs - three to five metres
| Species | Description and growing requirements | Attracts |
|---|---|---|
| Banksia (Banksia sp.) | Hardy evergreen shrubs with attractive foliage with bold cream-golden flowering spikes appearing over late summer to spring. Grows to 3 metres. Plant in an open sunny position in very well-drained soil. Regularly prune to encourage dense growth. | Birds |
| Bottlebrush (Callistemon sp.) | Hardy, woody shrub that grows up to five metres that produces beautiful blooms in a variety of single colours in spring and summer and sometimes again in autumn. Plant in a moist, well-drained, sunny position. Regularly prune to encourage bushier growth and increased flower production. Bottlebrushes make excellent screening plants and are quick growers. | Birds, insects |
Grevillea (Grevillea sp.) | Showy, evergreen plants that grow to 5 metres with nectar-rich flowers. They produce a 'spider flower' in a variety of single colours throughout the year. Grevilleas do best in a sunny position with light, gritty, free-draining soil. | Birds, bees, butterflies |
| Lilly Pilly (Syzygium sp.) | Hardy evergreen plants to 5 metres with glossy, green leaves with fluffy, pom-pom, white flowers in spring and summer followed by pink or red berries. Prefers a sunny position with well-drained soil. Lilly Pillies make excellent screens, windbreaks and hedges and can be pruned to size and shape. | Birds, bees, flying foxes |
| Tea Tree (Leptospermum sp.) | A bushy rounded shrub that grows to 5 metres. White or pink flowers cover the shrub in spring. Prefers well drained soil in a sunny position. Ideal as a screen, hedge or windbreak. | Insects, bees |
Shade and feature trees - over five metres
| Species | Description and growing requirements | Attracts |
|---|---|---|
Blush Satinash (Acmena hemilampra) | An evergreen tree with a dense crown, glossy green foliage, bright copper-tan new growth. Quick to establish and grows to 8 metres. Clusters of small white flowers appear in spring. Plant in full sun in well-drained soil. Suitable as a feature tree, screen or hedge. | Birds, bees, butterflies |
| Golden Penda (Xanthostemon chrysanthus) | An attractive specimen tree up to 8 metres. Showy, dense cluster of golden yellow flowers appear from summer to winter. Plant in full sun to part shade in well-drained soil. Suitable as a hedge, windbreak, screen, or feature tree. | Birds |
| Ivory Curl Tree (Buckinghamia cellsissima) seasonal | Fast-growing evergreen tree that grows to 8 metres. Striking, long, creamy- fragrant, honey-producing flowers appear from spring until autumn. Prefers moist, well-drained soil in a full sun to semi shade position. | Birds, bees |
Tuckeroo (Cupaniopsis anacardioides) seasonal | Attractive evergreen shade tree with rounded canopy. Grows to 8 metres. Green-yellow flowers are produced in autumn followed by orange fruits in winter. Plant in a full sun to partial shade position in organic rich soil. Ideal as a shade or specimen tree. | Birds, bees, insects |
| Tulipwood (Harpulia pendula) | A hardy, fast-growing, evergreen tree that grows up to 10 metres with attractive, pale green foliage. Large sprays of light green-yellow, slightly fragrant flowers appear in summer followed by orange fruit. Requires open sunny position in a light to medium soil type. Excellent shade tree. | Birds, bees |
| Wattle (Acacia sp.) | Stunning and iconic Australian tree with masses of bright or pale-yellow ball shaped flowers in winter and spring. Grows to 6 metres. Prefers a sunny position in well-drained soil. Wattles are suitable as a hedging plant or as a screen. | Birds, butterflies, bees |
Weeping Lilly Pilly (Waterhousia floribundum) | Hardy, evergreen tree that grows to 8m². Clusters of white flowers appear from spring to summer, followed by green, round fruits. Plant in a sunny open position in well-drained soil. Regular trimming will produce colourful, new growth and keep the plant bushy. Can be trimmed to shape and size. Ideal as a dense screen or windbreak, or stunning as a large container plant. | Birds, bees |