Melaleuca ericifolia

Botanical Name: Melaleuca ericifolia
Common Name: swamp paperbark, coast paperbark
Family:  Myrtaceae

Size:  3-12m H, 2-8m W
Leaves: Narrow linear shape, 5-12mm long, alternate. On short stalks.
Flowers: Creamy-white,small bottlebrushes. 2cm long, 1.5cm wide, on short lateral spikes which, after fruiting, continue to grow into leafy branches.
Flowering Time: Spring
Fruit: Small clustered capsules on previous year’s growth

Habitat/distribution:Riparian or swampy habitats in the north and northeast and north-west Tas. in lowlands bordering the Bass Strait coast where it can grow in dense thickets.  Also Furneaux Group, Vic, NSW.
Where to See: Tamar riverbank, Launceston, Waterhouse conservation area, for example.
Other notes: Tall shrub or small tree with many branches with white papery bark, and an attractive dense canopy.  Melaleuca ericifolia swamp forest communities under threat and protected by Nature Conservation Act.  A great screen plant which tolerates wet soils.