Brachychiton rupestris (Queensland bottle tree)

Plants for sale in the Boutique

The Brachychiton rupestris, known as the Queensland bottle tree, is a fascinating and very unusual plant, native to eastern Australia. Its most distinctive feature is its swollen trunk, which acts as a water reservoir to survive periods of drought.

Here are its main characteristics in summary:

• Habit and size: in its natural habitat, the trunk, which can reach a diameter of 2–3 metres, is the most striking part, while the height is usually between 10 and 20 metres. The crown is broad and develops at the top of the trunk.
• Leaves and flowers: the leaves are variable, from lanceolate to lobed. In spring–summer (October–December), it produces small star-shaped flowers of cream-yellow colour with red spots inside, which appear after the leaves have fallen.
• Traditional uses: for Aboriginal Australians, the tree was a vital resource: the water stored in the trunk was a source of survival, the seeds and roots were edible, and the inner bark fibre was used to make ropes and fishing nets.