How to Grow Manuka Trees in Canada

The manuka tree is prized for its medicinal benefits.

Manuka, also known as tea tree or leptospermum, is a small tree native to New Zealand and parts of Australia. The Australian tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia), the New Zealand manuka (Leptospermum scoparium) and the kanuka (Kunzea ericoides, formerly Leptospermum ericoides) are all part of the family Myrtaceae. The manuka tree is one of the most common wild bushes in New Zealand. The tree presents an abundance of delicate white flowers in the spring that are especially attractive to bees.

Instructions

1. Provide a greenhouse setting for the manuka tree. Frost intolerant, tea trees require a warm, sunny location. Bein tender perennials, manuka trees will not grow outdoors in Canada nor the northern regions of the United States. Manuka thrives in U.S. hardiness zones 9 to 11, where winter lows are rarely below 20 F.

2. Prepare a soil mixture for planting a manuka seed that contains equal parts of potting soil, organic compost and sand. The plant does best in moist, well-drained, nutrient rich soil.

3. Purchase manuka tree seed online from suppliers of herbal or medical plant seeds.

4. Fill potting trays with the prepared soil mixture. Sprinkle manuka seed on the soil. Cover with 1/8 inch of soil. Press down lightly on the surface of the soil.

5. Keep the soil uniformly moist, but not soggy. Keep seedlings in a warm, sunny location until germinated. Protect from frost and cold drafts.

6. Transplant seedlings to larger growing pots when each plant is 3 to 4 inches tall. Providing plenty of water when the tree is young improves the tree's tolerance to drought as it matures.

References

• Top Tropicals: Manuka, New Zealand Tea Tree

Resources

• Florest Floor: Revegetation Services
• The Native Plant Center: Leptospermum scoparium
• Sand Mountain Herbs: Manuka