The Largest Bottle Tree in Roma is a narrow leafed bottle tree, also known as the Queensland bottle tree. The name is derives from the bottle shaped appearance when the tree matures, between 5 to 8 years old.
This tree was transplanted from a local property in 1927. Already mature when it was transplanted, it is over 100 years old.
The Queensland Bottle Tree can live for well over 200 years, so it is still quite young. Major Thomas Mitchell 
described large trees at Mt Abundance in 1846 and they are still growing, making them well over 200 years old.
The shape is partly depending on the environment. Mature trees have large, wide trunks. When they are in open country (or transplanted) they tend to be squat and round. In denser scrub, they will grow taller to reach for the available light.
This one requires six men to reach around its 9.52-metre girth. Even though Roma’s Largest Bottle Tree is mature, the trunk will continue to grow approximately one centimetre per year.
Often misunderstood, the bottle tree is not hollow and filled with water. The fibrous trunk swells with water held within the fibres.
Brent and Fiona found a bottle tree at Boondooma Homestead. The tree was dying and the trunk hollowed out. The carers heard of a remedy by filling the trunk with concrete and the tree started to flourish again.
Roma’s bottle tree has been suffering a threat of tourists walking over its root system. In 2022 (or late 2021), a new viewing platform was built that lets you get close to the tree without walking over the root system.
In 2022, the stats of the largest bottle tree in Roma are as follows:
- Girth: 9.52 metres
- Height: 13.0 metres
- Crown: 23.0 metres
Roma’s Largest Bottle Tree has been categorised as a big thing. Technically, it isn’t the typical oversized object big things are known for, however, it is a big example of a thing (a tree). So a big thing it is.
Three smaller and more slender Queensland bottle trees sit near the largest bottle tree. Two of them are outside the fencing around the main tree.
To Get There
From Roma Visitor Information Centre, head north (away from the highway) along Riggers Rd and follow for 650m, becoming McDowall St. Turn right into Edwardes St at the brown sign for Roma’s Largest Bottle Tree and the bottle tree is 100m on the right.
