Lomatia

A superb Argentine & Chilean shrub to small tree for the mildest of gardens. There are ridiculously mild gardens around here that can grow this and it is a ceaseless lament that ours is too cold for this fantastic plant. Related to Embothrium or Chilean Fire Tree, this has intricate flowers of yellow and red but the Silk Oak-like foliage outshines the bloom. Has the Proteaceae dislike of phosphorous. Very few.

A graceful thin-leaved evergreen shrub from Australia which has not been even slightly damaged by our occasional winter lows to 10F. Great texture and the profuse white clove-scented flowers in midsummer sends our various bee species into a frenzy of nectar and pollen gathering! Phosphorous sensitive so skip the fertilizer. This can tolerate shade as it is a forest understory plant but the flowering is better with more sun.

Guitar Plant. Choice evergreen Tasmanian Proteaceae family member whose vaguely guitar shaped flower buds open to a wild riff of white flowers that will have you playing the air trowel. Hardy to a normal zero degrees and drought tolerant when established. Needs no fertilizer.

The Tree Lomatia from Australia. As the name implies, this can get large - up to 20' or so. Here in the PNW, this will likely be a large shrub, getting taller as you move down the west coast. Bewildering array of leaf shapes within the species, this is but one form. White, scented flowers in summer.