Palm grass

Palm grass is a large, dense, perennial grass with a dense and rhizomatous root mass. It displaces native vegetation and facilitates the invasion of other weed species.

Description

• Stems are rounded.
• Leaves are large, elongate, less than 80 × 12cm, palm-like and pleated.
• Flowers are held in oval, elongated spikes and grow in large-branched clusters on hairy flowering stems in summer.
• Seeds are dispersed by birds, water and soil movement. Vegetative spread from rhizomes, dispersed by feral pigs.
• Human-mediated dispersal through the dumping of garden waste.
• Habitats include damp areas, urban forests, forest and riparian margins, roadsides, and disturbed areas.

What you need to know

Forms dense stands, displacing native plant species and preventing seedling establishment. Rapid decomposition of leaf litter may increase nutrient cycling rates and facilitate invasion by other weeds.

Management approach

This is a declared pest managed under the Canterbury Regional Management Plan 2018 – 2038 (PDF file, 10.6MB) within the exclusion programme.

Exclusion

Pests in the exclusion programme are not known to be established in Waitaha/Canterbury. If these pests were to become widely established, their impacts could be severe.

Therefore, early intervention by preventing their establishment is a cost-effective management approach.

The community should make us aware of any palm grass plants in Waitaha/Canterbury.

Rules

Any species declared a pest cannot be sold or be in a place where plants are being sold. Pest plants cannot be propagated, bred, multiplied, communicated, released, caused to be released, or otherwise spread.

Control

Do not attempt to undertake control of palm grass yourself. Report any sightings to us.