How to grow banksias: the right variety for your climate zone
Banksias are among the most ecologically important plants in the Australian flora. They are heavy nectar producers that sustain honeyeaters, lorikeets, possums and bats and their woody cones provide nesting and foraging habitat for insects and small birds. There are around 170 species, almost all endemic to Australia, ranging from rare, to prostrate groundcovers and trees 25 metres tall.
The challenge with banksias is choosing the right species for your climate. Most of the 90-plus Western Australian species are adapted to a dry Mediterranean summer and struggle in the humidity of eastern Australian summers. Most eastern species conversely need reliable rainfall and reasonable soil moisture. For each zone below we've listed a banksia to try as a reliable starting point.
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Before choosing a banksia: the three things that matter most
Drainage
Poor drainage is the most common cause of banksia failure. Most species need sandy or gravelly soils that drain rapidly. In clay or compacted soils, they are highly susceptible to Phytophthora cinnamomi (cinnamon root rot), a pathogen that is fatal and spreads through waterlogged ground. If your soil is heavy, choose species with clay tolerance (Banksia integrifolia and Banksia ericifolia are the most forgiving) or plant into a raised position. Use a hori-hori to test drainage before planting: fill the hole with water and check that it drains within an hour.
Phosphorus sensitivity
Banksias have evolved on some of the most nutrient-poor soils on earth and their proteoid root systems are efficient at extracting nutrients from conditions where other plants would starve. Surplus phosphorus in the soil disrupts this system and causes toxicity. Never fertilise banksias with standard garden fertilisers and avoid planting into soil that has been recently enriched with phosphorus-containing products. Our guide to natural fertilisers for native gardens covers a D.I.Y. approach.
Climate match
A banksia from the WA Mediterranean climate planted into a humid subtropical garden is unlikely to perform well regardless of other conditions. Humidity during summer dormancy, combined with high summer rainfall, stresses plants adapted to dry summers.
Cool temperate and alpine — silver banksia (Banksia marginata)
Silver banksia is the most cold-hardy and climate-adaptable banksia available to Australian gardeners. It is the only banksia with documented populations in alpine environments with plants growing above 1500m in the Victorian Alps and Snowy Mountains. Its altitudinal range, from sea level to the subalpine zone, makes it the right choice for the coolest frost-prone gardens in Victoria, NSW, the ACT, South Australia and Tasmania.
It handles a range of soils including moderately heavy soils, but it does not like waterlogging. Mulch generously around the base and water through the first two summers with a terracotta olla to establish a deep root system before relying on its cold hardiness. For more on cold-climate native gardens, see our guide to frost-tolerant native plants.
Banksias and fire
Many species of banksia regenerate vigorously from lignotubers after fire. This ecological role is important to understand, but it also means banksias should not be planted in the immediate zone around buildings in bushfire-prone areas. For guidance on planting in fire-prone gardens, see our guide to fire-retardant native plants.
Cool temperate — Old man banksia (Banksia serrata)
Saw banksia is one of the most visually distinctive trees in the eastern Australian flora. Its bark becomes deeply furrowed and tessellated with age. Older specimens develop the gnarled form that makes them one of the most character-filled trees available. It was among the first specimens collected by Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander at Botany Bay in 1770, which gives it a place in history.
The large grey-silver flower spikes appear through summer and early autumn, maturing into woody cones that provide shelter for insects and small birds. It grows naturally in coastal and near-coastal heathland, dry sclerophyll forest and on the Blue Mountains sandstone plateau. In cultivation it requires excellent drainage and is best given space.
Temperate — hairpin banksia (Banksia spinulosa)
Hairpin banksia is the most widely reliable and garden-worthy banksia for temperate Australian gardens. It flowers through the cooler months when its spikes in yellow, orange with distinctive dark red styles attract honeyeaters, spinebills and small mammals. The hooked styles project from the flower spike like hairpins, which explains the common name.
It is more tolerant of heavier soils than most banksias and forms from southern populations handle Canberra-level frosts without difficulty. Remove spent flower spikes with loppers to encourage subsequent flowering, but do not prune into old wood — it does not reliably regenerate from old stems the way some other species do.
Temperate to subtropical — heath banksia (Banksia ericifolia)
Heath banksia produces some of the most dramatic flower spikes with cylindrical columns up to 50cm long in brilliant orange to rust. It is the official floral emblem of Sydney and one of the most widely grown banksias in cultivation.
It handles heavier soils better than most banksias and coastal conditions including moderate salt spray. The compact cultivar 'Little Eric' reaches 1.5–2m and suits smaller gardens. Heath banksia does not have a lignotuber, which means it will not regenerate reliably from hard pruning. Keep pruning light and limited to removing spent flower spikes with sharp secateurs.
Coastal — Coast banksia (Banksia integrifolia)
Coast banksia has the widest natural distribution of any eastern banksia, occurring from Victoria's Gippsland coast all the way north to subtropical Queensland. This range reflects genuine adaptability making it most likely to succeed across a range of conditions. The yellow cylindrical flower spikes appear from autumn through winter and often sporadically year-round, making it a continuously productive nectar plant.
Older trees develop grey-brown tessellated bark and a broad spreading form that provides significant canopy. In coastal positions, it stays naturally smaller and more windswept in form. It tolerates salt spray, poor sandy soils, moderate clay and drought once established.
Growing WA banksias in the eastern states
The most reliable approach for growing WA species in Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane is grafting onto Banksia integrifolia or Banksia spinulosa rootstock. In Adelaide and the Southwest of WA, many WA species can be grown on their own roots in well-drained sandy soil.
Subtropical — Wallum banksia (Banksia aemula)
Wallum banksia is the banksia of the subtropical coastal heathland. Its common name refers to the word for 'sandy coastal lowland heathland' in the local Aboriginal language. The pale yellow-green flower spikes appear from autumn through winter and the plant develops a distinctive sprawling, gnarly form with brown bark that becomes furrowed with age.
Allthingsnative, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
It does not handle clay, waterlogging or heavy summer humidity combined with poor drainage. In the right conditions, it is a rewarding and ecologically important plant that supports a range of honeyeaters and lorikeets through winter. It grows more slowly than some other banksias but is long-lived.
Subtropical to temperate — swamp banksia (Banksia robur)
Swamp banksia is the exception in the banksia genus. It is a species that actually tolerates wet soil and even seasonal waterlogging. Its natural habitat is low-lying sandy or clay soils in coastal heathland and swampy margins from subtropical Queensland to temperate southern NSW.
The flower spikes are unusual; large and bold but in blue-green to yellow-green rather than the typical orange or yellow, ageing through several colour stages as they develop. It is a fast-growing and architecturally distinctive plant that provides interest in a moist garden position. It handles clay soil better than almost any other banksia.
Mediterranean and south-west WA — scarlet banksia (Banksia coccinea)
Scarlet banksia is the most visually striking banksia in the genus with flower spikes of brilliant red and grey. It grows on the south coast of WA from Albany east toward Esperance, in sandy soils with the Mediterranean dry summer and wet winter that is characteristic of that region.
Outside its native range it is difficult. In Perth and Adelaide gardens with well-drained sandy soil it is achievable on its own roots. In eastern states gardens it requires grafting onto rootstock. The reward if you can provide the right conditions is worth it — there is nothing else in the genus quite like it. Handle with care as the stiff, serrated leaves are sharply toothed and leather gloves are advisable.
Tropical — tropical banksia (Banksia dentata)
Tropical banksia is the only banksia adapted to the seasonal wet-dry cycle of tropical Australia rather than the more temperate rainfall patterns that most of the genus experiences. In Darwin and tropical Queensland gardens it fills the same ecological role that Banksia marginata or Banksia integrifolia fills in southern gardens.
Casliber, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
It is a fast-growing plant in suitable conditions and develops into a small tree with attractive grey bark. It is rarely seen in cultivation outside the tropics and is not suited to temperate conditions, but for Darwin, Cairns and similar gardens it is a valuable and genuinely local native. Use a terracotta olla during dry season establishment to maintain consistent root zone moisture while the plant becomes self-sufficient.
The architecture of banksia flowers
Each spike is not a single bloom but a densely packed column of individual paired flowers. Each produces a long, curved style that is trapped inside the tube (known as the perianth) under tension. As the flower ages, the perianth splits and the style springs free carrying pollen on its tip.
This adaptation means the plant offers pollen-bearing flowers continuously rather than all at once, extending the period over which it can be visited and cross-pollinated. The colours are similarly functional: the yellows, oranges and reds are most visible to honeyeaters. The woody cone that remains after flowering opens in response to the heat of fire to release seeds into competitor-cleared soil below.
How to establish any banksia successfully
The single most important step is planting in autumn. Banksias planted in spring or summer face heat stress before their root systems are developed enough to sustain them. Water deeply once or twice a week for the first twelve weeks, then taper to once a week through the first summer.
Apply a 7–10cm layer of coarse wood chip mulch around the base, keeping it clear of the trunk. Never mulch with fine organic matter that could compact and hold moisture against the root crown. Our guide to why native plants fail in the first year covers the most common establishment mistakes and how to avoid them.
Banksias are incredibly beautiful and immensely rewarding. If you get the right ones for your garden's climate, they are relatively straightforward once established and provide interest on multiple fronts, from cones to leaves and the wildlife that come to visit.
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A Guide to Australian Native Gardening
How to plan, plant and care for a thriving native garden, whatever your experience level.
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