''Callistemon'' 'Captain Cook' is a
cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
of the plant
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
''
Callistemon
''Callistemon'' is a genus of shrubs in the family Myrtaceae, first described as a genus in 1814. The entire genus is endemic to Australia but widely cultivated in many other regions and naturalised in scattered locations. Their status as a se ...
'', widely grown as an
ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...
.
History
The cultivar originated as a seedling of ''
Callistemon viminalis
''Melaleuca viminalis'', commonly known as weeping bottlebrush or creek bottlebrush, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia. (Some Australian state herbaria continue to use t ...
''. It was noted to have a more dwarf and bushy habit than usual and an abundance of flower buds as a young plant.
[ Originally known and sold as 'Compacta', the name was changed to 'Captain Cook' to mark the 1970 bicentennial of James Cook's voyage to Australia. At a later stage, plants grown from seed were distributed under this name, and the true-to-type variety, which can only be propagated from cuttings became difficult to obtain.][
]
Description
''Callistemon'' 'Captain Cook' grows between high. It forms a dense, slightly weeping shrub.[
A proliferation of red "brushes" are produced in spring, with further flowering sometimes occurring in late summer or autumn.
]
Cultivation
''Callistemon'' 'Captain Cook' is most suited to climates ranging from cool-temperate to semi-tropical.[ It is adaptable to most soils, but prefers well-composted loam.][ Pruning after flowering helps to maintain the plant's shape.
The cultivar must be propagated from cuttings to maintain its original characteristics.][ Insect problems include leaf-webbing caterpillars and scale.][ A small amount of chicken manure or complete plant food applied in spring is also of benefit to growth.][
]
See also
* List of Callistemon cultivars
* Callistemon viminalis
''Melaleuca viminalis'', commonly known as weeping bottlebrush or creek bottlebrush, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia. (Some Australian state herbaria continue to use t ...
References
External links
Captain Cook
James Cook (7 November 1728Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...
Cultivars of Australian plants
Garden plants of Australia
Drought-tolerant plants
Ornamental trees
{{Australia-eudicot-stub