Metrosideros citrina Curtis, Bot. Mag. 8: plate 260. 1794; Callistemon citrinus (Curtis) Skeels

Shrubs, 1–5 m; bark fibrous or hard-papery. Leaves alternate; blade narrowly elliptic to elliptic or narrowly obovate, 2.6–9.9 × 0.5–2.5 cm, veins pinnate, surfaces glabrescent. Inflorescences (10–)20–80-flowered, flowers in monads, pseudoterminal, sometimes also axillary distally, 45–70 mm wide. Flowers: calyx lobes hairy abaxially, sometimes only marginally, margins scarious, 0.5–0.6 mm wide, or herbaceous; petals deciduous, 3.9–5.8 mm; filaments distinct, 30–45 per flower, red or mauve, 17–25 mm; style 23–31 mm; ovules 170–300 per locule. Capsules 4.4–7 mm. Cotyledons obvolute. 2n = 22.

Flowering spring. Disturbed riparian areas; 0–50 m; introduced; Calif., La.; Australia.

Melaleuca citrina is widely cultivated for its showy flowers; it hybridizes with other species of bottlebrush and there are many named cultivars.