Pruning Kangaroo Grass

I often get asked how I keep the Kangaroo Grass (Themeda triandra) looking good in my cultivated native garden.

I love the weeping nature of the Kangaroo Grass in my garden as the texture, colour and movement of the stalks and seeds are very romantic as well as native! I can attest that our local kangaroos like to forage on them as well!

But I am also interested in aesthetics in my garden and I prune the grasses about 3 times a year to renew their growth in February or March, October and December. I only prune on cooler days and if we have good soil moisture and rain forecast, or give them a very good watering after pruning.

I use very sharp secateurs and prune to the base. Sometimes I also add some native plant fertiliser around the base after pruning.  I collect the pruned stalks and seeds to use as mulch in other parts of the garden as it mats down really well. The seeds also propagate and end up colonising other parts of the garden with even more Kangaroo Grass. The pruned plants take about one month to recover. I also pruned the adjacent Swamp Banksia at the same time to encourage bushiness.

Check next month’s newsletter for an update.

Shaun Walsh