Here is another of my very favourite Correas that is such a useful plant in the landscape. Correa baeuerlenii or Chef’s Hat Correa is found naturally growing on the south coast of NSW on shady, damp sites, therefore it grows happily under large trees and will cope with periods of dry and also light frost.

It has deep red stems that are quite showy against the lime green leaves and the long pale greenish/yellow flowers are prolific from Autumn through Winter. Their unique shape gives this Correa its common name of ‘Chefs Hat Correa’ and they add extra interest to the garden at this.

Correa baeuerlenii can be used as a hedge, pruned hard to make a formal looking screen or as a feature shrub, it does need shade and will be unlikely to thrive with too much sun. It grows to approximately 2 metres tall by 2 metres wide.

As seen above it forms a low hedge under larger trees, and although this has been clipped, generally this Correa is naturally quite dense.

In the image above and below these Correa baeuerlenii have been pruned to create tight formal style joined balls, this is in a garden in Melbourne by Kate Seddon Landscape Design, I love her pairing with the Acacia ‘Mini Cog’.

In the wild Correa baeuerlenii has a Status of ‘vulnerable’, however as it is so versatile it is often used in a native garden, especially in Victoria and southern NSW.

The photos below were taken at Cranbourne Botanical Gardns last year and show how dense this species grows, the foliage covers from the ground up and with the help of a ittle annual tip pruning these specimens have a beautiful habit.

This planting has been kept at around 1.5 metres, which is a good height for a mid layer or fence screening. Correa baeuerlenii is quite drought hardy once established but it does enjoy a cool root run, so if you are growing it in an area with Summer heat it is best planted under the shade of taller trees.