Veined Spear-grass
Austrostipa rudis
Tufted grass with flower stems to 1.3 m tall. Stem joints (nodes) have dense velvety hairs. Leaves inrolled, folded or flat, up to 30 cm long and rough to the touch. Short hairy leaf-collar (ligule). Open loose seedheads to 50 cm. Seeds are pale to reddish brown on maturity, and covered with white or tawny hairs on lower half.
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Flora Type | Grasses |
| Former Scientific Name | Stipa rudis |
| Distinctive Features | Rough bristle or awn 30-90 mm long, bent twice. Blunt tips to the glumes is characteristic |
| Biology | Perennial. Shortly rhizomatous. Often on poor rocky soils in grassland and forest, from sealevel to the high country. Preferential grazing of other grasses can lead to flowering and seeding of Spear-grass and their long awns (bristles) can work their way into the skin, mouths and eyes of stock, and contaminate wool. |
| Native Status | Native |
| Taxonomy | |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Tracheophyta (Vascular Plants) |
| Class | Magnoliopsida (Flowering Plants) |
| Order | Poales |
| Family | Poaceae |
| Genus | Austrostipa |
| Species | rudis |
Seed coloration and hairiness as well as the awns (bristles on seeds) are important identification features for Spear-grass species. A food source for seed-eating birds including finches. Also attracts moths and butterflies.
| Interesting Facts | |
|---|---|
| Similar Species | Three subspecies which vary in the length of the bristle or awn and the nature of the hard projection (callus) at the base of the seed. |
| Native Status | Native |