Best plants for Brisbane’s subtropical climate

Brisbane's wonderful subtropical climate allows residents to enjoy their gardens all year round. To ensure that gardens flourish, it's important to choose plants that are suitable to Brisbane soils and weather conditions.

Once established, many native plants require minimal supplementary watering, and are best suited for low maintenance gardening.

Many of these plants (listed below) are naturally found in tropical and subtropical areas, and don’t spread and become weedy.

Need help at your next nursery trip? See below our top picks suitable for Brisbane conditions.

Groundcovers, grasses and vines

Cut-leaf daisies Brachyscome spp.
Flax lillies Dianella spp.
Native violet Viola banksii
Fan flower Scaevola aemula
Bower of beauty Pandorea jasminoides
Mat rush Lomandra sp.

Low shrubs – 1-2 metres

Thyme honey myrtle Melaleuca thymifolia
Coastal rosemary Westringia fruitcosa
Melaleuca ‘Claret Tops’
Syzygium ‘Aussie Boomer’

Medium shrubs – 2-5 metres

Golden candlesticks Banksia spinulosa
Bottlebrushes Callistemon sp.
Butterfly bush Pavetta australiensis
Spider flower Grevillea sp.
Lillypilly Syzygium sp.
Brisbane wattle Acacia fimbriata - Brisbane's native floral emblem
Swamp banksia Banksia robur

Small trees – 5-8 metres

Tuckeroo Cupaniopsis anacardioides
Brown gardenia, Native gardenia Atractocarpus fitzalanii
Golden penda Xanthostemon chrysanthus
Ivory curl flower Buckinghamia celsissima

Tall trees – over 8 metres

Hoop pine Araucaria cunninghamii
Flame tree Brachychiton acerifolius
Weeping lillypilly Waterhousea floribunda
Wheel of fire Stenocarpus sinuatus
Tulipwood Harpullia pendula

Want free native plants?

We're helping residents to cultivate their yards, balconies and courtyards by offering free native plants.

The Free Native Plants program offers everything from ground covers and tufting plants, small shrubs like bottlebrush and honey myrtle, all the way up to tulipwood trees and weeping lillypillies, so there is something for everyone no matter the size of your patch.

Find out how to access free plants today.