Australian Bottle Tree (Brachychiton rupestris)

The Australian Bottle Tree from Queensland, Australia makes an interesting container plant or a stately specimen in areas where it can be planted in the ground. As a small indoor houseplant, the root forms a thickened caudex and it makes an unusual bonsai as shown in the photo. When planted outside in warm zones, the trunk remains straight with thin palmate leaves, and over many years it swells into the shape of a bottle. Many of the Bottle Trees in Australia look the plant in the second picture. Australian Bottle Tree is a resilient plant tolerating dry conditions and a cramped root system. The older leaves fall in the spring as the new growth starts.