Tantoon

Leptospermum polygalifolium is a shrub that typically grows to a height of 0.5–3 m (1 ft 8 in – 9 ft 10 in) or a tree to 7 m (23 ft) or more, with thin bark but that is thick and flaky in larger specimens. Younger stems are covered with short hairs at first and have a conspicuous flange near the leaf bases. The flowers are white, greenish, cream-coloured or sometimes pink, mostly 10–15 mm (0.39–0.59 in) in diameter and are arranged singly on short side shoots. There are dark reddish-brown bracts and similar bracteoles at the base of the young flower buds but that are shed as the bud develops. The floral cup is usually glabrous, 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) long, tapering to a pedicel about 1 mm (0.039 in) long. The sepals are broadly egg-shaped to oblong, 1.5–2.5 mm (0.059–0.098 in) long and are lost before the fruit develops. The petals are 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long and the stamens 2.5–4 mm (0.098–0.157 in) long. Flowering mainly occurs from August to January and the fruit is a capsule about 5–8 mm (0.20–0.31 in) in diameter that remains on the plant for a few years.