Tough, unfussy and beautiful: A guide to Australian eremophilas
There is a category of garden plant in the Australian native flora that delivers with abundance and asks for almost nothing: eremophilas. Full sun, lean soil, minimal water, little fertiliser, no fuss — and in return, striking wildlife-attracting flowers through winter and spring.
Eremophila maculata — the most widely grown species in the genus, with flowers that range across red, orange, yellow, pink and purple.
Eremophilas have a visual range that runs from prostrate silver groundcovers to cypress-like trees. There are over 220 species that have evolved across the full spectrum of Australian climates from Mediterranean WA to the arid interior.
Eremophila glabra spp. — the most form-variable species in the genus, ranging from prostrate groundcover to upright shrub.
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The ecology of eremophilas
The name. Eremophila comes from the Greek: eremos (desert or lonely place) and philos (loving). While the majority of the 220+ species are arid and semi-arid specialists, several grow in Mediterranean-climate WA and a few in subtropical margins. The genus belongs to the figwort family, which places it alongside foxgloves and veronicastrum.
The wildlife relationship. Honeyeaters probe the tubes of eremophilas with their curved bill, contact the pollen on the anthers near the entrance and carry it to the next flower. The relationship is so specific that some eremophila species are thought to be pollinated by a single honeyeater species. An eremophila in flower in a dry garden is not just a visual asset but a genuine wildlife support system.
A native blue-banded bee visiting an eremophila — the tubular flower is calibrated for honeyeaters, but native bees also visit for nectar.
Arid adaptation. The leaf structures of eremophilas are a study in water conservation. Waxy or resinous coatings reduce moisture loss and fine hairs create a boundary layer of still air that slows evaporation. Small or needle-like leaves reduce total surface area.
What they ask for. Free-draining soil is the single most important requirement across the entire genus. Beyond drainage, full sun and lean soil are strongly preferred. A low-phosphorus native fertiliser applied sparingly in autumn is all the supplementation most species ever need. Light annual pruning with sharp secateurs after flowering maintains shape.
1. Spotted emu bush (Eremophila maculata)
Spotted emu bush is the most widely available, the most colour-variable and the most forgiving. The tubular flowers can be red, orange, yellow, pink or purple and the interior of the tube is distinctively spotted with a contrasting colour that gives the species its name. These spots are nectar guides, directing honeyeaters to the precise position in the tube where the anthers and stigma are located.
Spotted emu bush — flowers range across red, orange, yellow, pink and purple, with a spotted interior that acts as a nectar guide.
Spotted emu bush in bud — the flowers emerge through winter and spring, providing nectar when few other shrubs are flowering.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining soil. It tolerates alkaline soils, moderate drought and moderate frost. Trim lightly with sharp secateurs after flowering. In eastern states, grafted forms on Myoporum rootstock establish considerably more reliably in heavier or more humid conditions.
2. Tar bush (Eremophila glabra)
Tar bush is the most variable eremophila. It can differentiate from a prostrate groundcover to an upright shrub. The common name comes from the sticky, tar-like resin that coats the stems and leaves of some forms. Named cultivars including 'Kalbarri Carpet' (orange-red, spreading) and 'Mingenew Gold' (yellow, compact) are among the most widely used native groundcovers in Australian garden design.
Tar bush — resinous stems are a water-retention adaptation; the sticky coating deters herbivores and reduces moisture loss.
Allthingsnative, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Tar bush spreading form — one of the most drought-tolerant groundcovers available for dry and coastal Australian gardens.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in very free-draining soil. It tolerates alkaline clay in dry conditions, coastal exposure and extended drought. Groundcover forms suit slopes, embankments and the front of a native border. Trim lightly after flowering with sharp secateurs.
3. Silky eremophila (Eremophila nivea)
Silky eremophila's stems, leaves and flower tubes are covered in dense soft white hairs that give the plant an intensely silver appearance. This coating reduces water loss and reflects solar radiation in the intense heat of its WA sandplain home.
Melburnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Silky eremophila — dense white hairs cover the entire plant, producing an intensely silver foliage effect that holds through summer and winter.
Silky eremophila in flower — lavender-purple tubes against silver foliage, one of the most photographed eremophilas in cultivation.
Grafted forms dramatically improve establishment outside WA. The silver foliage is as ornamental through summer as the flowers are through winter and spring.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in very free-draining, sandy or gravelly soil. Trim lightly with sharp secateurs after flowering. Suitable for containers where drainage can be controlled. Also featured in the purple flowers guide and the acidic soil guide.
Grafted eremophilas
When to choose grafted. If you garden in coastal NSW, southeastern QLD, coastal or inland VIC, or any position with clay-heavy soil or more than 700mm of annual rainfall, grafted forms are the recommended choice for almost every species on this list. In WA Mediterranean-climate gardens or in genuinely free-draining sandy soil in a dry climate, own-root plants are often fine.
Caring for grafted plants. Keep the graft union above soil and mulch levels at all times. Remove any shoots that emerge from the rootstock below the graft immediately using sharp secateurs or a hori hori — rootstock suckers will outcompete the grafted scion if left unchecked.
4. Weeping emu bush (Eremophila longifolia)
Weeping emu bush is one of the most ecologically, horticulturally and culturally important plants in the Australian arid zone. It grows as a large shrub or small tree with long, narrow grey-green leaves and produces brick-red to pink tubular flowers over a long season. Indigenous communities across central Australia consider it the most sacred and culturally significant plant in the landscape.
Allthingsnative, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Weeping emu bush — one of the most culturally significant plants in central Australia, with a weeping canopy and brick-red flowers visited by honeyeaters year-round.
In the garden it functions as a structural canopy plant and one of the most effective bird habitat plants available.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining soil. Allow space as a mature plant will reach 4–6m with a spread of similar width. Suits large screens and windbreaks in dry inland gardens. Water through the first summer with ollas, then reduce to rainfall only.
5. Weeooka (Eremophila oppositifolia)
Weeooka is immediately distinguishable from most other eremophilas by a single visible characteristic: its leaves are arranged in opposite pairs along the stems. This is the source of both the scientific name and the common name weeooka. The flowers range across cream, white, pink, red and the deep maroon of subsp. rubra.
Weeooka — opposite leaf arrangement is instantly distinguishable from most other eremophilas, with flowers from cream through to deep maroon.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining soil. The leaf arrangement makes it an excellent structural foliage plant. Prune lightly after flowering with sharp secateurs. Grafted forms recommended for humid coastal positions and heavier soils.
6. Budda / native cypress (Eremophila mitchellii)
Budda is a large shrub or small tree with fine, dense, drooping foliage that looks like a cypress or conifer. The common name 'native cypress' is widely used for exactly this reason. The fine, feathery texture is quite unlike anything else in the native shrub flora at this scale.
Ian Sutton from Collinsville and Oberon, Australia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Budda — fine conifer-like foliage on a large eremophila, one of the most distinctive structural plants in the arid flora.
It grows naturally in semi-arid inland NSW, QLD and SA, where it forms dense thickets in red soil communities. The aromatic timber was traditionally used by Aboriginal communities across its range for campfire and tool-making.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining soil. Most effective as a large specimen or in a small group as a screen or windbreak. Clip lightly with loppers to maintain density.
7. Turpentine bush (Eremophila sturtii)
Turpentine bush releases a strong, resinous fragrance that carries on the air and clings to clothing and hands. The resin coats the stems and leaves and is the plant's primary water-retention mechanism. It is among the more frost-tolerant eremophilas, making it useful for cold inland gardens.
Malleechick, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Turpentine bush — resinous foliage with a strong characteristic fragrance, and purple to mauve flowers through winter and spring.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining soil. It tolerates alkaline soils, moderate to heavy frost and extended drought. Trim with sharp secateurs after flowering. Suitable for SA and inland gardens where other eremophilas may be less reliable.
8. Eurah (Eremophila bignoniflora)
Eurah is the eremophila that grows in seasonally flooded country. Across the floodplains and watercourse margins of inland NSW, QLD and SA, it experiences periods of complete inundation followed by months of dry heat. This makes eurah genuinely useful for garden positions that defeat most eremophilas — the seasonally wet corner, the low-lying bed that pools after heavy rain.
Ethel Aardvark, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Eurah — the floodplain eremophila, tolerating seasonal inundation that would destroy most species in the genus.
In the garden
Plant in full sun to part shade in positions that may experience periodic waterlogging. Tolerates moderate frost and a wide range of soil types. Suits positions near water features and low-lying areas. Prune to shape after flowering with bypass loppers on larger stems.
9. Pink eremophila (Eremophila laanii)
Through winter and spring, pink eremophila covers itself almost completely in deep pink to rose-pink tubular flowers. This mass display is comparable to the best of the Proteaceae but achieved in conditions of significantly less care. It holds over a long flowering season from mid-winter through late spring.
Melburnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Pink eremophila — one of the most spectacular mass-flowering displays in the genus, almost entirely unknown outside WA.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining, slightly acidic to neutral soil. Suits Mediterranean-climate and dry temperate gardens across WA and SA. Grafted forms strongly recommended for eastern states and coastal gardens. Prune by one third after the main flowering flush with sharp secateurs.
10. Desert fuchsia (Eremophila deserti)
Desert fuchsia earns its common name from the colour and form of its flowers. They are tubular bells with a slightly flared opening. It is compact at 0.3–1m with a naturally dense, rounded habit that requires almost no pruning to maintain.
Russell Best, CC BY 3.0 AU, via Wikimedia Commons
Desert fuchsia — deep purple-red tubular bells on a compact, naturally dense shrub suited to the most arid garden conditions.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in very free-draining soil. Tolerates alkaline soils, extreme drought and moderate frost. Compact size suits the front of a native border, rock gardens and containers.
11. Crimson turkey bush (Eremophila gilesii)
Crimson turkey bush is named for its flowers and for the use of dense stands as shelter by inland birds including the Australian bustard. In genuinely arid conditions across the NT, WA, SA and QLD it forms one of the few consistent low shrub layers in communities where almost nothing else grows at this height, providing shelter, nesting sites and nectar for a wide range of arid-zone bird species.
Geoff Derrin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Crimson turkey bush — intensely crimson-red flowers on a compact arid shrub, one of the most important wildlife shelter plants in inland Australia.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in very free-draining soil. Tolerates alkaline soils, extreme drought and moderate frost. Suits arid and dry temperate gardens across SA, WA and inland NSW and QLD. Do not overwater — excess moisture is more likely to cause problems than too little.
12. Slender fuchsia bush (Eremophila decipiens)
Slender fuchsia bush produces long, arching stems that drape over neighbouring plants. The deep red tubular flowers are produced through winter and spring, making the whole plant appear to cascade with colour. It grows naturally in southwestern WA, where it frequently scrambles through adjacent shrubs in a behaviour more typical of a climber than a shrub.
Melburnian, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Slender fuchsia bush — arching stems carrying deep red flowers, with a flowing habit quite different from the typical compact eremophila form.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in free-draining soil. The arching habit suits planting over a low wall, rock or bank where the stems can drape naturally. Prune after flowering with sharp secateurs to encourage strong new growth.
13. Narrow-leaf emu bush (Eremophila alternifolia)
Narrow-leaf emu bush's leaves are needle-like, giving the plant a fine, almost heath-like texture. This extreme leaf reduction is a direct adaptation to aridity, as minimising total leaf surface area reduces water loss. The pink to red tubular flowers contrast well with the fine foliage, giving this species a distinctly different aesthetic that suits gardens where textural variety in the dry shrub layer is wanted.
Melburnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Narrow-leaf emu bush — near-needle foliage as an adaptation to extreme aridity, with pink to red flowers through winter and spring.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in very free-draining soil. Tolerates alkaline soils, extended drought and moderate frost. The fine foliage contrasts well with broader-leaved plants and fine-leaved hakeas in the dry border.
14. Serrate-leaved eremophila (Eremophila serrulata)
The serrated leaf margins give this species its name and may help channel dew toward the root zone in dry conditions. The flowers are yellowish-brown to green — an unusual colour for an eremophila. The interest here is not flower colour but ecological reliability: in genuinely arid conditions across all mainland states, E. serrulata flowers when almost nothing else does.
Murray Fagg, CC BY 3.0 AU, via Wikimedia Commons
Serrate-leaved eremophila — yellowish-brown to green flowers produced prolifically through winter and spring, one of the most reliable nectar sources in the dry inland.
In the garden
Tolerates heavy clay in dry conditions, alkaline soils, extended drought and moderate frost. Light trimming with sharp secateurs after flowering maintains a compact form. One of the best eremophilas for inland NSW, QLD, SA and WA gardens.
15. MacDonnell's desert fuchsia (Eremophila macdonnellii)
This compact shrub, named after the MacDonnell Ranges of central Australia where it grows naturally, produces its blue-purple tubular flowers through winter and spring. It grows in genuinely arid conditions where the flowers are visited by honeyeaters that may travel considerable distances to a reliable winter nectar source. Blue-purple is rare in eremophilas, which trend strongly toward red, orange, pink and mauve — making this one of the most unusual colour combinations in the genus.
Mark Marathon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
MacDonnell's desert fuchsia — blue-purple flowers against silver-grey foliage, one of the most unusual colour combinations in the genus.
In the garden
Plant in full sun in very free-draining, slightly acidic to neutral soil. Suits arid and dry temperate gardens across SA, NT, QLD and inland NSW. Performs well in containers where drainage can be controlled. Tolerates alkaline soils and moderate frost. Grafted forms available and recommended for humid eastern positions.
The case for more eremophilas
The fifteen plants on this list represent a fraction of what the genus offers. What makes them worth knowing is not just the visual range or the wildlife value, though both are exceptional. It is the relationship between what they ask for and what they give back.
Eremophila glabra 'Lime Gold' — one of several named cultivars that bring the genus's drought performance to mainstream garden conditions.
Free-draining soil, full sun, minimal water once the root system is established — these are the conditions where most gardening becomes difficult. Eremophilas respond to these conditions not by tolerating them but by flowering.
Eastern spinebill on an eremophila in flower — the relationship between the tubular flowers and their primary pollinators is one of the most specific in the Australian flora.
The investment is in choosing the right species for your conditions and giving the plant one establishment summer with consistent deep moisture. For a plant that asks so little, the return is genuinely extraordinary.
Pinyuru (Eremophila cuneifolia) — one of many garden-worthy eremophilas beyond the fifteen covered here.
For other growing guides, see the series on grevillea, banksia, hakea, kangaroo paw, waratah, boronia and wattle.
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