Eremophila longifolia
Eremophila longifolia
Safety & Hazards
The plant is toxic[1].
Cultivation Details
Eremophila longifolia is a plant of arid and semi-arid regions in Australia, being found from the warm temperate zone to the tropics. Plants are not very cold-tolerant but are said to be able to withstand short periods where temperatures fall to around -7°c[2]. It is suited to dry climates but has been successfully cultivated in warm, temperate areas so long as there is not too much rain, which makes them susceptible to disease, root rot and frost damage[3]. A very hardy plant that requires minimal care. It prefers an open sunny position with no shade, and requires a well-drained soil. It does not like heavy clay soils. Established plants are extremely drought tolerant and once established, no watering is required[3]; The plant can flower all year round, though mainly in spring and early summer. Fruit only develops if there has been sufficient rain[[3]. The plant responds well even to heavy pruning, resprouting rapidly in the growing season[3].
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. The seed can be difficult to germinate - exposing them to smoke prior to sowing can help, as can mechanically abrading some of the outer seedcoat to allow moisture to penetrate[3]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Consider giving the plants some protection from the cold for their first few winters outdoors. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 10cm with a heel, mid summer in a frame. Pot up in the autumn. There are variable results, the cuttings often proving difficult to strike[3]. Division of root suckers is the most effective method of increasing plants - dig them up from around the main plant and treat them in the same way as cuttings until they are rooting freely[3]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Eremophila+longifolia>
Pollinators
Data unavailable
References
- [1]Australian Medicinal Plants. — Lassak. E. V. and McCarthy. T. · New Holland Publishers · 2001 · ISBN 1876334703 ↩︎A very good and readable guide to the subject.
- [2]Australian Native Plants. — Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. · Collins. (Australia) · 1988 · ISBN 0-7322-0021-0 ↩︎A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.
- [3]Growing Native Plants — Australian National Botanic Gardens · http://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/ ↩︎A series of articles giving details of cultivation and matters of general interest (including a few plant uses) on over 250 Australian plants.
- [4]Flora of New South Wales — http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/floraonline.htm ↩︎An on-line resource giving a brief botanical description of all the native plants of New South Wales, their habitat and range, together with diagrams and photographs of the plants.
- [5]An Ethnopharmacological Study of Medicinal Plants of the Kamilaroi and Muruwari Aboriginal Communities in Northern N — Qian Liu · 2006 ↩︎In particular it looks at Ethnopharacological information on the genera Eremurus and Exocarpus. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [6]Flora of Victoria. — Ewart. A. J. · University Press; Melbourne · 1930 ↩︎A flora of eastern Australia, it is rather short on information that is useful to the plant project.