5 highly unusual Australian native plants for your garden
Australia’s native plants are full of surprises. Beyond the familiar grevilleas and correas is a group of species that feel almost otherworldly — flowers that move, petals with fringes like embroidery, metallic colours, strange pollination tricks and shapes you don’t see anywhere else.
These plants aren’t just bushland oddities. Many are available from native nurseries and grow beautifully in home gardens with the right conditions. If you want something that stops people in their tracks, these five natives bring a genuinely unusual twist to any planting scheme.
1. Triggerplant (Stylidium graminifolium)
What makes it unusual
Triggerplants don’t just sit there looking pretty — they move. Each flower contains a spring-loaded column that snaps forward when an insect lands, dusting it with pollen in a split second. It’s one of the fastest plant movements in the world, hidden inside an otherwise delicate pink bloom.
How to grow it
- Forms neat clumps of fine, grassy leaves
- Tall stems covered in soft pink flowers
- Sun to part shade
- Prefers well-drained soil
- Hardy and drought-tolerant once settled
2. Fringe Lily (Thysanotus tuberosus)
What makes it unusual
At first glance, the Fringe Lily looks like a typical purple wildflower — until you notice the petals. Each one is edged with tiny feather-like fringes, giving the flower an almost hand-crafted look. It’s one of the few plants with this style of frilled petal structure.
How to grow it
- Small perennial with grass-like foliage
- Pops up in spring and early summer
- Full sun
- Best in sandy or gravelly soil with excellent drainage
- Works beautifully in rockeries or native meadow plantings
3. Wedding Bush (Ricinocarpos pinifolius)
What makes it unusual
Wedding Bush doesn’t look like a typical Australian native at all. Its flowers are pure white, perfectly symmetric five-petalled stars that appear in tight clusters across the shrub. The geometry is so crisp and uniform it almost looks artificial — more like a porcelain ornament or a crafted paper flower than something wild.
How to grow it
- Medium shrub (1–2m), naturally neat and rounded
- Thrives in sandy, well-drained soils — ideal for coastal gardens
- Full sun to part shade
- Requires very little maintenance once established
- Flowers heavily in spring, often again in autumn
- Works well as a feature shrub or in mixed native beds
4. Blue Pincushion (Brunonia australis)
What makes it unusual
This plant produces perfect pincushion-shaped flower balls — dense, round, and a vivid blue that stands out even from a distance. The symmetry is almost unnatural, making it one of the most visually distinctive small natives you can grow.
How to grow it
- Full sun to lightly filtered shade
- Prefers sandy or loamy soil with good drainage
- Forms a neat basal clump
- Low-care and tolerant of a wide range of conditions
5. Mountain Devil (Lambertia formosa)
What makes it unusual
Mountain Devil flowers look like little devil horns — long tubular blooms with curved, claw-like tips. The shape is unusual enough on its own, but the bright red colouring makes them look almost animated. Birds absolutely flock to them.
How to grow it
- Medium shrub (around 1–2m)
- Sun or part shade
- Tolerates coastal conditions and wind
- Great for informal hedging or structural planting
A garden feels different when it includes something unexpected. These unusual natives don’t just add interest — they create small moments of surprise. A flower that flicks into motion, a fringe that looks hand-stitched, a bloom so blue it barely seems real.
Despite their strange features, all of these plants are hardy, low-care and widely available. They slot easily into native, cottage or mixed gardens and quickly become the plants visitors ask about first.
If you’re planning your next planting, explore our guides on pond-loving natives, heat-tolerant species and native cottage combinations.
