Botanical name:

Olearia lineata

Common name(s):

About:

A slender and twiggy tree daisy featuring very narrow, almost needle-like leaves, along with gracefully drooping branches that collectively create an appealing and attractive weeping appearance. Delicate small rayless flower-heads emerge on the branchlets from the vibrant spring season through the warm summer months. This resilient plant is typically found thriving in scrub and boggy areas, ranging from Lake Brunner in the north to the southernmost reaches of Stewart Island. It generally grows to a height of 2 to 4m, and in some instances, even taller, while displaying a remarkable tolerance for both moist and dry soil conditions as well as the challenges presented by coastal environments.

Natural habitat:

Lowland to montane (10-300m a.s.l.) grey scrub, tussock grassland and forest margins. Often on river terraces in or near seepages and ephemeral wetlands, on occasion even growing in shallow water. Also found on the margins of steep river gorges, and in and amongst rock outcrops, boulder field and at the toe of alluvial fans.

Growing environment:

Frost, Drought, Sun, Shade, Wind, Wetland, Coastal & Free draining tolerant.

Endemic distribution:

New Zealand’s South Island, easterly from north Canterbury south to Southland and Stewart Island.

Height: 8m

Flowering: 

November – January with a white – yellow coloured flower/s

Fruiting:

January – April

Uses:

Bird food / Attractant, Bee food, Riparian plantings & Forests.

How to grow:

Easily grown from semi-hardwood cuttings and fresh seed. A beautiful specimen tree which is very drought tolerant once established but can also tolerate waterlogged soils, and is of course extremely cold tolerant. The fine, linear, grey-green leaves and somewhat spreading pendulous branches and stout tree habit are particularly noteworthy. It deserves to be more widely cultivated than it currently is.

** Seed germinates without pre treatment. 4 weeks cold stratification will help speed this up though

** Seed can be slow to germinate, taking 9 – 12 months, often with a low germination rate.