Recommended for your garden in the south of Spain: The cow itch tree

Lagunaria patersonii is an evergreen, medium sized tree with a dense canopy of leathery, grey-green leaves providing lots of shade

Denise Bush

Malaga

Friday, 7 June 2024, 14:03

Native to New South Wales, Norfolk Island and Queensland Australia, Lagunaria patersonii can be found in many temperate zones of the world. Its popularity has meant it has a lot of common names including pyramid tree, Queensland white oak, Norfolk Island hibiscus, primrose tree and cow itch tree. In Spanish it is known as the 'pica pica' tree.

Lagunaria patersonii is an evergreen, medium sized tree reaching up to 15 metres in ideal conditions by about a six metres spread. The dense canopy of leathery, grey-green leaves, forms a pyramidal shape making it suitable for smaller gardens and for providing lots of shade. It can also be grown as a hedge or used for screening.

It is fast growing and easy to raise from seed; it is drought resistant once established and will tolerate salty coastal winds and most soil types, apart from heavy clay and waterlogged soils.

The large pink flowers, which resemble Hibiscus, appear from late spring and through the summer. They are hermaphrodite so only one tree is needed to produce seeds.

After flowering, greyish capsules form containing bright orange seeds and lots of fine, stinging hairs (hence the cow itch and 'pica pica' common names). It is probably not a good tree to have where there are children or pets nearby.

Germination takes on average between two to six weeks and can be speeded up by soaking the seed in tepid water overnight before sowing. Lagunaria patersonii can also be propagated from semi-ripe wood cuttings. Any pruning to remove dead or damaged branches should be carried out in late autumn or winter.

Lagunaria is named after the fifteenth or sixteenth century Spanish botanist Andrés Laguna who helped found the famous Jardín Botánico de Aranjuez.

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