Plant Number: 8
Common Name: Grass Tree, Balga Grass Plants
Scientific Name: Xanthorrhoea johnsonii
Derivation of name
Xanthorrhoea - from the Greek 'xanthos' meaning yellow and 'rheo' meaning to flow; which is a reference to the resin that flows from the stem
Johnsonii - after Lawrence A.S. Johnson, 20th century botanist and Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney from 1972 to 1985.
Description
- Slow growing plant to 3 metres
- Protected under Queensland law which prohibits people from digging up wild plants.
- Grass-like cluster of needle-shaped leaves up to 1 metre
- Trunk (caudex) usually blackened as a result of fire
- Vertical flower spike to 2 metres, pale white-yellow flowers
Human uses
Indigenous Australians heated the resin from the lower trunk, with beeswax, charcoal or fine sand, to make a glue which was used to fix spear tips to shafts, axe heads to hands etc. The soft wood from the flower spike was also used to make fire. Nectar from the flower was soaked in water to produce a sweetened drink, while the soft white base of new leaves were chewed for nourishment. Seeds were also crushed to make a type of flour.
Acknowledgment: Mangroves to Mountains, Australian Botanic Garden, Bush Heritage