My obsession with Breynia ‘Ironstone’

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Technically this is Breynia cernua ‘Ironstone Range’ and I absolutely adore it, these images are taken in a friends garden, he is a very talented “master” gardener and treats his Breynia ‘Ironstone’ mean….and it loves him for it 😉

I have written about Breynia ‘Ironstone’ before and have been patiently waiting to photograph a fine specimen like this to sing its praise once more. I am a bit taken with this native shrub for two main reasons the first is its obviously striking foliage and interesting habit.

I love the way it is weeping but the branches are held gracefully horizontal, it really doesn’t look like any other native Australian shrub.

The second reason I encourage every second person to plant it, is its highly contrasting colours, when mixed in with lime greens it makes a fantastic feature shrub.

So apparently the secret to keeping Breynia ‘Ironstone’ looking this lovely is to cut it back hard once a year, and by hard I mean almost down to the ground.

The leaves are quite thin and are prone to looking a little ratty after dry or windy periods, so cutting it back encourages fresh, red new growth. Plant it in part shade in a sheltered position and keep up the water in the drier months and you will be rewarded with a soft, delicate feature shrub to add contrast and interest in your native garden. In the image below you can see a large spun copper dish, cool and enticing for the birds in the Breynia’s shade 😉

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Kath Gadd

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Comments

44 responses to “My obsession with Breynia ‘Ironstone’”

  1. Bronwynne

    It sure looks nice. But can it become invasive? Do birds eat and spread the berries? Is it in the euphorbia family ?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Bronwynne,

      Yes it can become a little invasive, the seed is very viable and spreads easily,

      Best Wishes,

      Kath

      Reply
    2. Bill

      It is aggressive in subtropical QLD sending up root suckers all over the place. Great for soil stabilisation or erosion control but awful in garden.

      Reply
      1. Kath Gadd

        Hi Bronwynne, Thanks for letting us know of its weed potential in sub tropical Queensland, do you find the ‘Ironstone’ cultivar to be problematic also?
        Best,
        Kath

        Reply
  2. Louise

    Been growing it in Far North Qld. Yes, it is in the euphorbiaceae family. Haven’t seen it become invasive, though it did send up a few suckers (easily controlled). Also attracts the common grass yellow butterfly which look great contrasted against the purple. Caterpillars will defoliate the shrub if enough of them but a pruning once the caterpillars are gone will do wonders. Not very long lived I think but luckily grows easily from cuttings.

    Reply
    1. Patrick McCormick

      Hi Louise

      Do you have any suggestions for controlling the caterpillars? I have a very young native Breynia and those little yellow butterfly caterpillars are decimating it! I am trying spraying with soapy water and also picking the caterpillars off by hand, but any other ideas would be welcome! I live in Darwin.

      Reply
      1. Heather Waldron

        Let the catepillars have it, it has a natural ability to recover quickly and put out lovely fresh new growth.

        Reply
      2. Mim

        Breynia are pollinated by Leafflower Moths (Epicephala species) which also lay eggs inside the flower ovary. This relationship is mutually beneficial as moth larvae then consume some of the developing seeds.

        It is a larval food plant for the Common Grass Yellow Butterfly (Eurema hecabe) -which explains why you’ll often see masses of yellow butterflies fluttering around the bushes – and also for Parallelia solomonensis and Phyllocnistis diaugella moths. At times the leaves are almost entirely stripped bare by hungry caterpillars, which only seems to strengthen the plant – it readily explodes with new growth soon after.

        Reply
  3. Gena Garside

    What is the best time of year to cut back your Breynia ironstone?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Gena,

      You can prune back your Breynia in late Autumn to early winter, then you should get a good flush of new growth for the warmer months, don’t hesitate to give it a generous cut back too, they quite like it!

      Best Wishes,

      Kath

      Reply
  4. Annie

    Ok is it frost tolarant.

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Annie,

      No it is not frost tolerant,
      Sorry,

      Kath

      Reply
  5. Wendy

    I love these too, and have a few in my backyard in Brisbane, but one of them is suffering a bit and I’m thinking of digging it up and moving it, as I think it needs more sun. How do they respond to transplanting?

    Reply
    1. Lol

      Did you find out the answer to the question about transplanting. I have one near a pile of trees I gave to burn and I don’t want to lose it. I have them in my forest but feel they are so precious

      Reply
      1. Kath Gadd

        Hi Wendy,

        This plant reseeds very easily so I think it should be fairly hardy to transplant, however that depends how long it has been in the ground for? if it is under a year I would give it a go.

        Good Luck!

        Kath

        Reply
  6. Jo

    I’m in the dry tropics (Townsville), considering using it as a formal hedge which is something it’s supposedly recommended for … But looking at these comments and at three plant itself which has a more “open/spreading ” habit, I’m not certain it will be suitable. Thoughts?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Jo,

      I’m not sure of its suitability as a hedge, when I grow it here in the Sydney region it can become quite sparse in the winter and if its particularly dry. It loves being pruned though, and perhaps as your climate is warmer it might be ok?

      Best Wishes,

      Kath

      Reply
      1. Esther

        Hi, I am thinking of putting my Breynia into a spot where it gets sun in summer but none in winter. Does anyone have experience with that? Does the plant thrive? I live in SE Qld, 500m above sea level, very good red soil. Thanks!

        Reply
        1. Kath Gadd

          Hi Esther,

          It should be fine as long as you give it plenty of water in Summer.

          Best of luck,
          Kath

          Reply
    2. Nick

      hi Jo. this photo is my former tree on Magnetic Island. I never ever pruned it. It provided a reasonable screen, as you can see. This tree was completely severed at the base by a strong wind, twice, and simply grew back. The plant will go into a sprouting frenzy if the roots are cut. The roots appear to spread quite wide in distance. My neighbour decided to pave their property to the fence and possibly they cut the root, causing it to sprout through their pavers. Unfortunately, I decided to remove the tree, for their sake, which was very sad, given it was one of my most beautiful trees. Also, it was near my main water pipe so I was concerned. https://imgur.com/Eb70BKW

      Reply
    3. Mihiri E

      We live in Brisbane and noticed our Braynia is loosing leaves. Any idea why that might be? (Its not cold yet here but its been raining and quite a bit windy). Should we be fertilising it a bit morecto help it?

      Reply
  7. Vanessa Lushey

    Hi I have a Breynia Ironstone that is suddenly losing its leaves, what is wrong?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Vanessa,

      Breynia ‘Ironstone’ can drop leaves when there is a cold change in the weather or an exceptionally dry or windy period, could that be what is affecting it?

      Best Wishes,

      Kath

      Reply
  8. Lydia Giles

    Will Breynia “Ironstone” grow in the Adelaide Hills, if protected from frost?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Lydia,

      You would need to protect it from frost and also keep the water up in the summer, it really likes to have a moist soil and loves humidity.

      Best,

      Kath

      Reply
  9. Barbara

    I live in Brisbane and my breynia plant leaves are being eaten by something leaving holes in the leaves. Any idea what the pest or bug might be and how to stop this from destroying the leaves of the plant. Thanks

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Barbara,

      Are you able to send me a photo please so I can best advise?

      Thanks,

      Kath

      Reply
      1. Frances

        Mine are also going the same.

        Reply
        1. Kath Gadd

          Hi Frances and Barbara,

          It sounds like your Breynia are being eaten by a seasonal pest, you can apply a pest oil 10 days apart 3 times and this should break their life cycle.
          Hope this info helps,

          Best Wishes,

          Kath

          Reply
      2. Mim

        Breynia are pollinated by Leafflower Moths (Epicephala species) which also lay eggs inside the flower ovary. This relationship is mutually beneficial as moth larvae then consume some of the developing seeds.

        It is a larval food plant for the Common Grass Yellow Butterfly (Eurema hecabe) -which explains why you’ll often see masses of yellow butterflies fluttering around the bushes – and also for Parallelia solomonensis and Phyllocnistis diaugella moths. At times the leaves are almost entirely stripped bare by hungry caterpillars, which only seems to strengthen the plant – it readily explodes with new growth soon after.

        Reply
        1. Kath Gadd

          Fascinating Mim, thanks for the comment!
          Kath

          Reply
  10. Nick NAHLOUS

    Hi Kath. What is the best time of year to prune this back? I planted some new specimens 12 months ago and they need pruning back. Thank you

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Nick,

      I usually prune this back in Autumn, before the windy season and colder months kick in. You can almost treat it like a deciduous plant, it doesn’t need much foliage over winter. If it’s looking a bit straggly now you could do a gentle tip prune to encourage denser growth but otherwise I would wait until next season.

      Hope that helps! 🙂
      Kath

      Reply
  11. Sue

    Hi Kath
    I had new Breynia Ironstone planted in my indoor garden at the end of August, so it’s not in full sun and receives mostly filtered afternoon sun. It’s been producing plenty of new growth since planted, though the new growth is green, not red. Would that be because it’s indoors and not receiving a lot of direct sun? Is the green likely to turn towards red as it ages?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Sue,

      Yes that will be because it’s not getting enough direct sun, Ironstone Range puts on green growth in too-shady positions. Put it outside for at least a month and see if it starts producing red leaves.

      Best wishes,
      Kath

      Reply
      1. Marg

        Hi Kath,

        I live just outside Toowoomba in SE Qld and we can get can get quite heavy frosts, and I am successfully growing a number of the Ironstone plants in my garden having created little micro climates against the house and using mallee and silky oak for overhead protection. What seems to be their undoing more so here is our wind!! I have to really keep up the water when that happens and again like everyone is saying – a decent haircut and they bounce right back. I particularly love planting them with old man saltbush and the effect is quite stunning 🙂 Hope that helps sub tropical hopefuls!!

        Reply
  12. Anne

    Hi Kath, Is it OK to plant Breynia near a sewer line – ie is the root system invasive?

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Anne,

      How close to the sewer line are you thinking and what kind of sewer line is it (terracotta/poly)?

      Kath

      Reply
  13. Tracy

    Do you have any tips on how to propagate these? I have a row in my front garden and would like to plant more in the back. I have tried popping cuttings in small pots and also in water, but neither were successful.

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Tracy,

      Do you have any suckers coming up or new plants that are growing from seed near your exisiting Breynia? This would be the easiest way to propagate the plant. If you’re trying cuttings make sure you’re doing it the right way, there’s a good article here about propagating natives, which might help: https://wonderground.press/howto/propagating-native-plants-with-nancy-shaw/

      All the best!

      Reply
  14. Kay

    I’m in Townsville, Nth Qld. I’m taking mine out. I love it, but it’s 2 years old and 5m high. I have pruned back a year ago to about 1m. My problem with it is it’s very vigorous matting root system so far out from the trunk and suckers coming up everywhere any time I dig to plant anything new.

    Reply
  15. Peter Shelton

    Hi Kath

    I was just wondering if propagating from seed will go true to type. I already have 8 – 10 seedlings and just ploughed on without thing of that. Certainly the initial leaves are pretty green. Oops?

    thanks
    Peter

    Reply
    1. Kath Gadd

      Hi Peter,
      To get the colour of the leaves you will need to use a tissue cutting culture. I hope this helps you out.
      Let me know how you get on with your propagation of this.
      Many thanks

      Reply
      1. Peter

        Thanks for the reply Kath.

        Whoa, too advanced for me. (Not even plain old propagation by cutting?!) I will just settle for whatever they revert to and go to a nursery for an “Ironside”!

        regards
        Peter

        Reply

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