Mount Wheeler bottlebrush facts for kids

Mount Wheeler bottlebrush (scientific name: Melaleuca hemisticta) is a cool plant. It belongs to the myrtle family, called Myrtaceae. This plant is special because it only grows naturally in the coastal parts of Queensland, Australia. You might also hear it called Callistemon hemistictus by some plant experts. It's a tall, bushy plant with dark green leaves. Its flowers are bright red spikes with yellow tips, looking a bit like a bottlebrush!

What it Looks Like

The Mount Wheeler bottlebrush is a bush that can grow up to 6 m (20 ft) tall. It has bark that looks grey and can be papery or stringy.

Its leaves grow one after another along the stem. They are usually 42–102 mm (2–4 in) long and 6–28 mm (0.2–1 in) wide. The leaves are flat and often shaped like a narrow egg. You can see a main vein in the middle and about 15 to 30 smaller veins branching out.

Flowers and Fruit

The flowers grow in spikes at the ends of the branches. These branches keep growing even after the flowers bloom. Sometimes, flowers also appear on the sides of the branches.

Each flower spike is about 30–45 mm (1–2 in) across. It can have anywhere from 10 to 50 individual flowers. The petals of each flower are small, about 3.4–5.4 mm (0.13–0.21 in) long. They fall off as the flower gets older.

Each flower has many stamens, between 35 and 53 of them. These stamens have red threads (called filaments) and yellow tips (called anthers). The plant usually flowers from March to September. After flowering, it produces woody fruits that are like small boxes, about 4–5.2 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long.

Plant Names

The scientific name Melaleuca hemisticta was first officially described in 2006. This was done by a scientist named Lyndley Craven. He wrote about it in a science journal called Novon.

The second part of the name, hemisticta, comes from Greek words. "Hemi" means "half" and "sticta" means "spotted". This name was chosen because the oil glands in the leaves are only found in the lower half of the leaf.

Some plant experts, like those at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, consider Callistemon hemistictus to be another name for Melaleuca hemisticta.

Where it Lives

The Mount Wheeler bottlebrush grows along the coast of Queensland, Australia. You can find it in areas between Bowen and Bundaberg. It also grows on islands nearby and on Mount Stewart, which is close to Townsville. This plant can live in many different places, but it often grows on the sides of cliffs.