Scaly phebalium

Phebalium squamulosum

“An open slender lightly foliaged shrub” – NPOS p. 120 This plant was hard to identify, as best as I can tell it’s a Scaly Phebalium.

Scaly Phebalium – flowing in winter, they’re meant to flower in spring.

The  Scaly Phebalium is a small woody shrub growing to about 1.5m. It’s leaves are narrow, less that 10mm wide, deep green with lighter coloured dots on the top side. The undersides are lighter in colour and covered in small scales, which is where the common name comes from. It’s found in standsone landscapes and is common in the Sydney area. NPOS describes it as aromatic, it does have a smell but it’s not nearly as strong as a tea tree, it could be that I have a bit of a blocked nose at the moment and am trouble smelling too.

Leaf underside showing the small scales. The leaf is about 8mm wide

Resources and references

• Atlas of living Australia
• Australian National Botanical Gardens

• Garigal National Park
• Native
• Phebalium Squamulosum
• Scaly Squamulosum