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Habitats
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Woodland Garden Sunny Edge;
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Medicinal Uses
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Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Alterative; Antibacterial; Antiseptic; Aromatherapy; Diaphoretic; Expectorant.
Tea tree, and in particular its essential oil, is one of the most important natural antiseptics and it merits a place in every medicine chest[254]. It is useful for treating stings, burns, wounds and skin infections of all kinds[254]. An essential oil obtained from the leaves and twigs is strongly antiseptic, diaphoretic and expectorant[156, 157, 238]. It stimulates the immune system and is effective against a broad range of bacterial and fungal infections[238]. Internally, it is used in the treatment of chronic and some acute infections, notably cystitis, glandular fever and chronic fatigue syndrome[254]. It is used externally in the treatment of thrush, vaginal infections, acne, athlete's foot, verrucae, warts, insect bites, cold sores and nits[238]. It is applied neat to verrucae, warts and nits, but is diluted with a carrier oil such as almond for other uses[238]. The oil is non-irritant[238]. Another report says that high quality oils contain about 40% terpinen-4-ol, which is well tolerated by the skin and 5% cineol which is irritant. However, in poor quality oils the levels of cineol can exceed 10% and in some cases up to 65%[254]. The essential oil is used in aromatherapy. Its keyword is 'Antiseptic'[210].
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Other Uses
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Essential; Wood.
An essential oil is obtained from the leaves[156, 157]. It is strongly germicidal and is also used in dentistry, deodorants, soaps, mouthwashes etc[156, 238]. Wood - very durable in wet conditions and in damp ground[167].
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Cultivation details
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Requires a fertile, well-drained moisture retentive lime-free soil in full sun[182]. Prefers a soil that does not contain much nitrogen[188]. Plants are shade tolerant and succeed in most soils and aspects except dry conditions when they are grown in Australian gardens[157]. This species is not very cold hardy and is only likely to succeed outdoors in the very mildest parts of Britain. It tolerates temperatures down to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[157] but this cannot be translated directly to British gardens because of our cooler summers and longer colder and wetter winters. Seed takes about 12 months to develop on the plant, the woody seed capsules persist for 3 or more years[200]. Any pruning is best done after the plants have flowered with the intention of maintaining a compact habit[200]. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus[200]. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[200].
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Propagation
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Seed - surface sow in spring or autumn onto a pot of permanently moist soil in a warm greenhouse. Emmerse in 5cm of water and do not water from overhead. Grow on until the seedlings are 0.5cm tall then remove from the water and pot up a week later. Seedlings are liable to damp off when grown this way, sowing the seed thinly, good ventilation and hygiene are essential for success[200]. Grow the plants on for at least their first winter in a greenhouse and then plant them out 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 lateral shoots with a heel, July/August in a frame[200].
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 You can download this page as a PDF
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Author
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(Maiden.&Betche.)Cheel.
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Links / References
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[156]Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Useful Wild Plants in Australia.
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A very readable book.
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[157]Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. Australian Native Plants.
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A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.
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[167]Holliday. I. and Hill. R. A Field Guide to Australian Trees.
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A well illustrated and very readable book, but it does not contain much information for the plant project.
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[182]Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos.
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Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.
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[188]Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers
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Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.
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[200]Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
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Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
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[210]Westwood. C. Aromatherapy - A guide for home use.
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An excellent little pocket guide. Very concise.
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[238]Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses.
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A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
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[254]Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants
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An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
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[301]Karalliedde. L. and Gawarammana. I. Traditional Herbal Medicines
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A guide to the safer use of herbal medicines.
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Subject : Melaleuca alternifolia
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