Download Mobile App: Android Download Mobile App: Android

Victorian Christmas Bush

Evergreen shrub or small tree. Grows 1 – 6 m high.

Leaves

Bright yellow-green to dark green and paler underneath. They are 4 – 15 cm long and 1 – 3 cm wide, and generally have a toothed or curved edge. The leaves have a minty smell when crushed.

Flowers

Funnel-shaped and white, or pink to pale mauve, with purple and orange spots inside. They are about 2 cm long and grow in clusters at the end of branches. They are slightly scented.

Fruits/Seeds

Known as a mericarp, it is 2 mm long and contains one seed which is about 1mm long.

Field Guide

Improve your identification skills. Download your Victorian Christmas Bush field guide here!

  • Species Category: Plants
  • Species origin: Native
  • Conservation status: Common
  • Did You Know?
    • Known by Indigenous Australians as Coranderrk (Wurrundjeri) and its flower stems were used as fire sticks

  • What to Observe

    • First fully open single flower

    • Full flowering (record all days)

    • End of flowering (when 95% of the flowers have faded)

    • Seeds dropped to the ground (record all days)

  • When and Where

    When To Look

    • From late spring through summer
    • Flowers appear from November to March
    • Fruit appears after flowering

    Where To Look

    • In coastal and sub-alpine areas, from southern Queensland to Tasmania
    • In rainforests, forests and woodlands, commonly along watercourses and in moist gullies
    • Also found in urban areas, particularly in gardens

  • What Else?

    Similar Species

    Another Prostanthera species (mint bush) won’t have fine hairs on the inside and outside of the flowers, which can be seen with a magnifier on the Victorian Christmas Bush.
  • Trails: Anakie Gorge VIC, Cape Conran VIC, Haining Farm VIC, Morwell NP VIC, Randwick Coastal Walkway NSW, Randwick Environmental Park NSW, Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne VIC, Valley Reserve Mount Waverley VIC, Currawong Bush Park VIC
  • Species Region: Australia