Brisbane tree guide

Cheese tree

Glochidion ferdinandi · also called Buttonwood, Pencil cedar

The cheese tree is a hardy native tree of eastern Australia, named for its small lobed fruits that look like tiny wheels of cheese or miniature pumpkins. It grows naturally around Brisbane, puts on growth quickly and casts generous shade, and its fruit feeds many native birds. It can be kept as a pruned shrub or left to form a broad, shady dome.

Native to South East Queensland
8 to 15 m tall

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Cheese tree, from Wikimedia Commons — Photo: Mark Marathon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cheese tree at a glance

Height: 8 to 15 m (up to 30 m in the wild)
Growth: Fast
Leaves: Semi-deciduous
Flowers: Small and easy to miss
Origin: Eastern Australia, from the Paluma Range near Townsville to the New South Wales south coast
Family: Phyllanthaceae

How to identify a cheese tree

The leaves are oval, semi-glossy and up to about 10 cm long, lined up in two flat rows along each twig, so a whole branchlet can pass for a single compound leaf. New growth is reddish, the upper surface often carries purplish spots, and leaves turn orange or red before they fall. The greenish-yellow flowers are tiny and easy to miss. The fruit is the giveaway: flattened, deeply lobed capsules around 1.5 cm across that ripen pink to red and split open to show bright red seeds, mostly from November. Bark is grey-brown, fissured and flaky. From a distance, big old trees can resemble camphor laurel, with a similar finely cracked brown trunk and a broad, dense crown.

Growing a cheese tree in Brisbane

This is a local tree. Flora of Australia records it from the Paluma Range near Townsville south to the New South Wales south coast, in open forest, coastal rainforest and rainforest edges. It is a hardy, fast-growing choice for Brisbane yards, copes with a wide range of soils and grows in sun or shade, although young plants need plenty of water to establish. As a pioneer species it is often planted in bush regeneration, and it may self-seed into disturbed ground nearby. Expect it to drop some leaves in winter.

What to watch out for

Expect some leaf drop in winter and occasional caterpillar damage to the foliage. As a pioneer species it can self-seed into disturbed ground nearby. Old trees can be confused with the weedy camphor laurel from a distance, so check the leaves and fruit before deciding a tree is a weed.

Pruning and care

Decide early whether you want a shade tree or a pruned shrub, because it suits either. For a shrub, trim lightly and often rather than cutting hard all at once. For a tree, remove dead, damaged or crossing branches and lift low limbs over paths gradually. Water young plants well until they are established; after that it is a very hardy tree. Caterpillars sometimes chew the leaves, which is part of its value to local wildlife. Large limbs over a roof or fence are a job for a professional with the right gear.

Cheese tree: your questions

Short answers, from the sources below.

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Why is it called a cheese tree?

The cheese tree is named for its small, flattened fruits, which are divided into segments like a tiny wheel of cheese. Plenty of people think they look more like miniature pumpkins.

How tall does a cheese tree grow?

Botanical references describe the cheese tree as a shrub or tree up to about 15 metres, and PlantNET puts the common variety at up to 8 metres. Exceptional trees can reach 30 metres.

Is the cheese tree good for birds?

Yes. Its fruits split open to show bright red seeds that many native birds eat, and its leaves feed butterfly caterpillars.

Does the cheese tree lose its leaves?

Partly. The cheese tree can drop some of its leaves in winter, and the old leaves often turn orange or red before they fall.