Dianella caerulea

Cultivation Details

Dianella caerulea is a very variable plant with a wide range from the temperate zone of Tasmania, north through eastern Australia to southern New Guinea. Different forms of the plant can succeed in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. Hardier forms can tolerate some snow and short-lived frosts, in somewhat colder parts of the temperate zone they will often succeed outdoors in the dappled shade of a sheltered stable environments such as a woodland, so long as temperatures do not drop far below zero for long periods^[1]. An easily grown plant, it succeeds in ordinary garden soil in sun or dappled shade^[1]. Requires a well-drained neutral to acid soil^[2]. The species is very variable and has been divided up into several forms. These are:- var. aquilonia. A solitary tufted plant up to 60cm tall, found in northeast coastal Queensland var. assera. This grows as a solitary tufted plant up to 180cm tall along the New South Wales coast and Blue Mountains to northeast Queensland, often found in rainforest. var. caerulea. A solitary tufted plant up to 50cm tall, found from Tasmania to southeast Queensland var. cinerascens This is a pale-grey leaved form up to 80cm tall growing inland in New South Wales var. petasmatodes A more mat-forming variant, which reaches 200cm in diameter and 130cm high. It is found on the far north coast of New South Wales into Queensland. var. producta Up to 130cm tall, found in eastern New South Wales and into southeast Queensland. It has a greenish white to blue perianth var. protensa is a smaller variant up to 50cm tall, which grows as a solitary tuft. It is found through New South Wales to central Queensland, growing in sclerophyll forest on sandy soils var. vannata is a taller variant to 130cm recorded from the Blue Mountains, the far north coast of New South Wales, eastern Queensland to southern New Guinea.