Red Flowering Gum

Red Flowering Gums are highly ornamental, easy-to-grow, medium trees with stunning red flowers and large gum-nuts.

For information on staying waterwise, seeking a watering exemption while establishing your garden, offers, rebates and more, please visit the Water Corporation website.

Noongar Name: Boorn, Yorgam

Scientific Name: Corymbia ficifolia

Performance: Easy to grow

Size: Medium tree with a maximum height up to 10m

Flower: Red

Flowering Time: Birak – Djeran (Dec – May)

Natural Distribution: Grows in the Southwest of WA

: Corymbia ficifolia (CC BY-NC 4.0) Felix Fleck

: Corymbia ficifolia (CC BY-NC 4.0) zonsop

: Corymbia ficifolia 1 – Jason Pitman

: Corymbia ficifolia 1 – Perth NRM

: Corymbia ficifolia 2 – Jason Pitman

Growing at a Glance

See Growing Guide for more detail

Position: Suitable for a sunny position.

Watering: A waterwise, drought-hardy plant.

Feeding: Fertiliser not required.

Pruning: Generally not needed.

Waterwise Listing

Growing Guide

Ideal Position

Red Flowering Gum is versatile, enjoying a range of positions. Suitable for denser plantings and will perform well in full sun or light shade.

Red Flowering Gum makes an excellent feature specimen and focal point for any garden.

Red Flowering Gum is ideally placed at the back of your garden bed.

When to Plant and Watering

Plant young seedlings in Djeran (mid-Autumn) prior to the Makuru rains (Winter). Avoid planting in the hottest times of the year.
Seedlings should be watered twice a week over their first summer in the garden. It is important to ensure water penetrates down into the root-zone.
We recommend using a soil wetting agent as Perth soils are often ‘water repellent’, or do not absorb water effectively.
A layer of composted, coarse mulch can help in getting your garden started. It will help by reducing water loss and suppressing the growth of weeds.

Red Flowering Gum are waterwise, drought-hardy plants and do not require supplementary water once established.

Red Flowering Gum should be grouped with other waterwise, drought-hardy plants.

Feeding and Soil Care

Red Flowering Gum don’t need fertiliser because they are adapted to grow in our local soils, which are typically low in nutrients.
Plants will benefit from adding some vegetable-based compost (avoid those with manure) into the soil at planting.
As your garden develops, practice ‘cut and drop’ when you prune your plants. The leaf and branch material that falls to the ground slowly breaks down over time, releasing nutrients to help your garden to grow.

How to Prune

Red Flowering Gum generally don’t need pruning for shape, as their natural growth is usually attractive and/or interesting.
If part of the plant dies or grows in an undesired direction, prune from the base of the stem in question with a pair of secateurs or loppers.
You can also leave dead leaves and branches on the plant, as they provide valuable habitat and camouflage for insects.

Pruning trees of this size is a specialised skill. We recommend engaging a reputable tree surgeon for any puning needs