What is a Christmas bush in Australia?

Answer 1

A bush is a bush in Australia. A small bush may be a shrub.

"The bush" is another term altogether, and quite different from "a bush". The "bush" is the general rural area, somewhat remote from highly populated regions, and often confused with the outback. The "bush" is hard to define, as it is neither desert, not good agricultural land. It is more defined as that rugged region, often hilly or mountainous, where tree cover is reasonably thick. It is not like the outback, which gained its name from being "out the back of beyond", where trees are scattered more sparsely. The bush is not the same as the rainforest, as it tends to refer to drier regions.

Answer 2

There are several possible answers for what a Christmas bush in Australia is.
The most likely is the New South Wales Christmas bush, or Ceratopetalum gummiferum, which is a small tree, or large shrub, growing to about 4 metres in height. New leaves tend to be bronze or pinkish in colour, and in summer, which is when Christmas occurs in Australia, the tree comes out in a mass of white flowers dominated by huge red sepals, giving it the appearance of a display of red flowers.