AusBonsai

So went for a bushwalk today, and saw heaps of these around, a lot of them twisted and contorted with natural jin and shari - maybe an Aussie equivalent of the yamadori American junipers? These are native, that much I am sure of. It was a national park, so no collecting for me, but would just like an ID so that I can possibly buy some from a nursery. I'm thinking a sort of tea tree? Thanks!

The Foliage:




The bark (sorry for fuzzy pic):




The whole tree:

I would guess Prickly Tea-tree Leptospermum continentale

Assuming you were bushwalking close to home and given that papery, flaking bark I'd try checking the Persoonia species that are listed for your area. Just not sure about those terminal buds Just does not look right for any Leptos I know of....

Pics do not give a clear idea of whether its a tree or shrub, whether the leaves are alternate or opposite and no sign of flower or fruit so very hard to even guess, especially from this distance.

Bougy Fan wrote:I would guess Prickly Tea-tree Leptospermum continentale

Hi Bougy, yes at first I would agree with you, looking at google images. I did see some other tea trees in flower (white), but these particular ones weren't. The ones that were in flower had different foliage however.
After a quick google search, a subspecies called Leptospermum Juniperinum looks like it could be it??? the leaves look right... and a description says flaky bark. Only hitch is that apparently it grows in badly draining soils and marshes, which isn't right.

shibui wrote:Assuming you were bushwalking close to home and given that papery, flaking bark I'd try checking the Persoonia species that are listed for your area. Just not sure about those terminal buds Just does not look right for any Leptos I know of....

Pics do not give a clear idea of whether its a tree or shrub, whether the leaves are alternate or opposite and no sign of flower or fruit so very hard to even guess, especially from this distance.

Hi shibui, sorry for the lack of info! These were just quick snaps that I was hoping would give enough information. The individual in the photo was less than 2m tall, and none of the others I saw were over 2m either, so definitely a shrub. I was bushwalking in the blue mountains, at a place called Pearce's Pass which is off Bells Line of Road near Mt Wilson. More specifically, the walk was to Wall's lookout which overlooks the Grose Valley. Not sure if those locations will help or not. The trees were growing on a ridge, and it was very dry. The soil was sandy. Winter gets very cold up there, with occasional snow. Summers probably don't get above 30 degrees, though I'm not sure. There were also warratahs growing in the area which might give you an idea of the climate?

I have some other pics but they aren't any more helpful. Let me know if you want to see them! Thanks for your help

To reinforce what shibui said - something for scale in close ups with the leaves is a huge help. It's hard to tell if the leaves are 5 or 50 mm long from a photo without being there.

Hi Missybonsai , maybe Leptospermum trinervium ,common name Flaky barked tea tree. .

Sorry again for lack of info! The leaves are roughly 10-15mm long. I think Sno may be on the right track though, definitely the right bark! Thanks everyone!

Hi Missybonsai . If you happen to do the walk again one way of telling if it is Leptospermum trinervium is to look at the veins on the leaf . Trinervium's botanical meaning basically translates to 'three veined ' so if there are 3 veins running down the leaf that would help to Id it .

Thanks will do!