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Toona ciliata

Australian red cedar

Meliaceae Eastern Australia and southern Asia

Attracts Pollinators Fragrant (light)

SunFull Sun – Part Shade

WaterMedium

HardinessZones 10–11

Overview

Toona ciliata is a deciduous rainforest tree reaching 60-130 feet (18-40 m) tall in the wild, with cultivated trees commonly 40-65 feet (12-20 m), forming a broad spreading crown and a buttressed trunk to 3 feet (1 m) or more in diameter. The pinnate leaves are 12-35 inches (30-90 cm) long with 10-25 leaflets, each leaflet 3-5 inches (8-13 cm) long, and turn yellow before falling in the dry or cool season. New growth flushes red to bronze. Small bell-shaped white to pink flowers about 0.2 inch (5 mm) long are carried in large branched sprays and have a sweet scent. The timber is red and lightweight and was heavily logged across eastern Australia. Small winged seeds are released from woody five-valved capsules. The cedar tip moth bores into new shoots, causing forked, crooked growth in young trees.

Native Range

Native to eastern Australia from Queensland to southern New South Wales, with a wider natural range extending through southern Asia. Grows in subtropical and warm-temperate rainforest, gallery forest, and rich alluvial flats at low to moderate elevations.

Suggested Uses

Planted as a shade and timber tree in large gardens, parks, and rainforest plantings, spaced 20-40 feet (6-12 m) apart. The broad crown casts heavy summer shade and lets winter light through after leaf fall. The large size, buttressed roots, and falling leaves make it unsuited to small gardens or positions near paving.

How to Identify

Recognised by large pinnate leaves 12-35 inches (30-90 cm) long with 10-25 leaflets, red to bronze new growth, and a tall trunk with grey-brown scaly bark. Sprays of small white-to-pink bell-shaped flowers about 0.2 inch (5 mm) long appear with or after the new leaves. Woody five-valved capsules releasing winged seeds confirm identity.

Appearance

Size & Dimensions

Height60' - 130'

Width/Spread30' - 50'

Reaches mature size in approximately 20 years

Colors

Flower Colors

Foliage Colors

Fall Foliage Colors

Bloom Information

Bloom Period

~4 weeks

Spring Summer

Small fragrant flowers appear in spring and early summer, mainly September to December in its native range, as the new foliage expands. Flowering across a tree lasts 3-5 weeks. Capsules ripen over the following months and split to release winged seeds.

Detailed Descriptions

Flower Description

white to pink

Foliage Description

green

Growing Conditions

Sun Requirements

SunFull Sun SunPartial Shade

Requires 6-10 hours of direct sunlight daily

• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight

• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight

• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight

Soil Requirements

pH Range5.5 - 7.0(Neutral)

357912

Soil Types

loam clay

Drainagewell drained

Water & Climate

Water Needs

Medium

Frost Tolerance

tender

Time to Maturity

10-20 years

Care & Maintenance

Care Guide

Grows in deep, fertile, moist but well-drained soil in full sun to part shade, matching its rainforest-flat origins. Young trees need steady moisture and shelter and grow rapidly in warm conditions, gaining 3-6 feet (1-2 m) in height a year. The cedar tip moth bores into leading shoots, producing forked, crooked trunks where larvae are active. Trees grown among other species or in shade show less tip-moth damage than those in the open. The species is frost-tender when young and drops its leaves in the dry or cool season. Mature trees develop buttressed roots that can lift nearby paving.

Pruning

Formative pruning in the first few years selects and maintains a single leading shoot, countering the forking caused by tip-moth damage. Dead and crossing branches are removed in winter while the tree is leafless. Large trees need little pruning once a clear trunk is established.

Pruning Schedule

winter