A native tree of coastal salt marshes and clay shores that copes with salty water, flowering white to pale pink in late winter.
Il-Bruka is one of the few Maltese trees that can live with sea water. It grows in coastal salt marshes such as Għadira, and at the foot of clay slopes near the shore, where the ground is wet and salty. It is most common on Gozo and Comino, and in a few places it forms small woodlands.
How it copes with salt
Tamarisks send long roots down to salty groundwater and get rid of the extra salt through their small, scale-like leaves, so they can grow where most trees would die.
In flower
Between January and March the tree is covered in small white to pale pink flowers. It can grow more than five metres tall.
Protected
Il-Bruka is listed as threatened in the Red Data Book for the Maltese Islands, and is protected in selected areas under Schedule II of the Trees and Woodlands Protection Regulations. At Għadira Nature Reserve its numbers have been increased as part of managing the reserve.
Threats
Coastal salt marshes are among the rarest habitats in Malta, and building and clearing along the shore leave fewer places where it can grow.
How to help
Plant native Bruka rather than non-native trees in coastal and rural gardens: ERA lists it among trees suitable for rural planting. Report cutting or damage to protected trees to ERA.
Text: Online Flora of the Maltese Islands. Edited by the Editorial Team.
Photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz, CC BY-SA 4.0.
