Cymbopogon refractus – Native Lemon Grass (plant)

The plants are long-lived (5-25 years) and are very tolerant of low nutrient and dry sites, making C. refractus a suitable species to rehabilitate disturbed sites with rocky or skeletal substrates, such as eroded sites, quarries or mines. It has reasonable fodder value and if provided grazing pressure is not too high, it can survive for long periods of drought. C. refractus provides valuable stock fodder on poor soils as long as it is not grazed continuously. Despite its strongly aromatic nature it is often heavily grazed when young. It is an attractive species, with striking seed heads and the crushed foliage has a pleasant lemon/orange scent. It can be used as an alternative to Themeda australis in landscaping as the seed heads are equally distinctive and the plants are similar in size and form. C. refractus becomes unpalatable and very flammable when mature but resprouts after fire. It is tolerant of Phytophthora cinnamomi (from Greening Australia).