Melaleuca is a genus of around 381 evergreen trees and shrubs in the Myrtaceae family endemic to Australia and Malesia where they grow in a range of habitats including waterlogged areas, saline swamps and regions that are occasionally destroyed by forest fires. They resemble Banksia species because of their showy bottlebrush flowers and some are popular in cultivation as they can form dense screens that makes them useful as hedging specimens.