Lilly Pilly
Syzygium smithii
The new growth is the weak point: psyllids pimple the young leaves, and the sap-feeders that follow blacken what is left.
Spacing & sowing
- Plant spacing
- 9 ft 10 in
- In-row spacing
- 9 ft 10 in
- Between rows
- 12 ft 4 in
- Square-foot density
- Not suited to SFG
Growing
- Type
- Shrub · Perennial
- Botanical family
- Mixed / other
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Feeding
- Rose & flower
- Frost tolerant
- Yes
- Flowering
- May
Through the year
- Mar–Apr Bud Break
- Apr–May Spring Growth
- May–Jun Flowering
- Jun–Jul Fruit Set
- Jul–Sep pages.grow.permanent.events.READY_FOR_HARVEST
- Sep–Dec Growing
- Dec–Dec Winter Dormancy
- Jan–Mar Winter Dormancy
Pests & problems
- Psyllids Psyllid, which pimples the leaves
- Scale insects Immobile brown or white bumps fixed to stems and leaf undersides, sucking sap and weakening growth. Wipe off with a damp cloth or dab with horticultural soap; watch for the sooty mold that follows.
- Rust Myrtle rust
- Sooty mold A black film growing on the honeydew left by aphids, scale, or whitefly above. Deal with the sap-sucking pest and sponge the leaves clean.
Garden allies
Beneficial predators that hunt this plant's pests — grow their favourite flowers nearby to recruit them. companion plant
- Ladybird (lady beetle) Coccinellidae
The gardener’s favorite ally: adults and their alligator-shaped larvae each eat thousands of aphids, plus scale, mealybugs, and other soft-bodied sap-suckers. Grow flat, open flowers for the adults and never spray a colony that ladybird larvae are already working.
- Hoverfly SyrphidaeHunts Scale insects
Bee-mimicking flies whose legless larvae graze aphid colonies clean while the adults pollinate. A ribbon of shallow, nectar-rich flowers kept in bloom all season recruits wave after wave of them.
The Cottage Garden Companion — the gardener's herbarium at cottagegardencompanion.com