Gahnia melanocarpa at Clyde River Retreat

Black-fruit Saw-sedge at Clyde River Retreat

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Identification history

	Gahnia melanocarpa	19 Oct 2019	JackieMiles
	Unidentified	4 Sep 2019	ClydeRiver

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Author's notes

This grass is growing up to 139cm high (above dead leaves from last year) on one of the bigger clumps; It has seeds that are bright green, to white (twisting), to redish brown as they age. Rough backed and tooth-edged leaves that will cut your hand if you run it through your hand (like pampas but unlike Lomandra) and have a prominent central ridge on the back; grow alternately off stems which are red/brown for 5/6 cm where the leaf grows - quite like Thai Lemon grass in the way the leaves grow off the stem. 11cm between openings for leaves which get narrower all the way up as reach terminus and the leaves also become shorter - about 6cm.

4 comments

plants wrote:

5 Sep 2019

Not a grass, but a Gahnia (Cyperaceae).
The species is possibly G. sieberiana.

JackieMiles wrote:

6 Sep 2019

I'm thinking what you are describing as reddish is not actually the seeds but just dried flowers. Seeds are glossy little nuts that dangle on a thread from the tips of the stems when ripe and are either red or black. Would need photos of them to make an ID. G. sieberiana (red) and melanocarpa (black) are both possible from these photos.

ClydeRiver wrote:

6 Sep 2019

I think probably dried flowers too ... will go and take more pics and look dangling seeds too ...

ClydeRiver wrote:

8 Sep 2019

I hope that these new photographs help you - there is clearly a glossy black nut dangling from a thread. And I have thrown in a photo that includes a tiny white spider exiting it's exoskeleton too!

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