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Common Name: Grasstree

General Information

Xanthorrhoea australis is a Evergreen Perennial up to 1.00 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Australia - New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria.

Habitat

Poor sandy or heathy soils up to the montane zone[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Evergreen Perennial
Height	1.00 m
Pollinators	Bees
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Requires a well-drained light or medium soil and a very sunny position[]. Succeeds in poor soils in the wild[].
This species is not very frost-hardy in this country and normally requires greenhouse protection[]. It tolerates temperatures down to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[], though this cannot be translated directly to British gardens due to our cooler summers and longer colder and wetter winters. It would certainly be worthwhile trying it outdoors in the mildest areas of the country[].
Other members of this genus should also have the same edible and non-edible uses[, ].

Edible Uses

The pith of the stem is eaten raw or roasted, it has an agreeable nutty taste that is slightly balsamic[]. It contains about 41% carbohydrate, 3.5% protein and traces of vitamin C[]. It is possible to extract sugar from the stem[].
Leaf bases - chewed[]. They are hard to detach from the plant[]. They sometimes taste sweet and juicy though more often they are tough and astringent[].
The flowers produce an abundance of nectar and this can be collected from the flowers, either by sucking the flowers or by cooking them up to produce a syrup[].
The root might be edible[].

Medicinal

The resin has medicinal uses[]. No details are given.

Other Uses

A resin collects around the bases of old leaves and can be collected by beating the stems[]. It can be used as a varnish for wood or metal[, , ] and as an incense[]. It can also be used as a size, a sealing wax, mahogany stain for wood and medicinally[]. It makes a good glue[]. The gum is soft and pliable when heated over a flame but it cools to a rock-hard consistency[].
The flower stems are good firesticks[].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a warm greenhouse. The seed usually germinates in about 5 weeks[]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. Grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter and plant them out in late spring or early summer, giving them the protection of a frame or cloche until they are growing away happily. Protect the outdoor plants for at least their first winter.
Division of offsets in late spring.