Lomandra

Lomandra Plants

It’s easy to take for granted the number of Lomandra cultivars available to gardeners and designers today.

Of the most popular lomandras specified in residential and commercial landscape designs, most are the result of one man’s focussed breeding program.

Todd Layt is the forefather of Lomandra breeding in Australia, and has made an international career from his determination to change how we specify and use Lomandras in the landscape.

Whether used in mass planting schemes, as accents or in native garden designs, lomandra’s grass-like, long, flowing foliage brings a constant calm to the garden.

There is nothing like the sound and sight of a mass planting of Lomandra, being transformed by a breeze to make it resemble the rolling waves of the sea. Being evergreen in appearance and long-lived adds backbone and structure to a garden’s planting scheme.

Lomandra is a genus of native Australian strappy or grass-like plants. Lomandra longifolia and the 50 other naturally occurring varieties thrive throughout Australia except for the Northern Territory.

A huge range of cultivars has increased the diversity of this exciting plant range and offer a wealth of variation in colour, form, and size to suit any garden.

Lomandra are typically very hardy and will tolerate most growing conditions from extreme wet to drought.

Lomandra are happy in full sun or shade and will cope with a wide range of soil types and pH levels. Lomandra typically from dense root systems that penetrate deep into the soil making them ideal for erosion control and steep banks.

The striking form of typical Lomandra varieties makes them ideal for accent plantings, mass plantings and as a special feature.

Lomandra are used by Indigenous Australians to create baskets hence the colloquial name, Basket Grass. Lomandra is also known as Spiny-head Mat-rush.

Lomandra – comes from the Greek, Loma, which means edge or border and andra, which means ‘man’. Longifolia – is derived from longi- (Latin) for ‘long’ and folia, which is Latin for ‘leaf’.

Varieties

Although Lomandra are highly versatile some species will do much better than others in specific climates and settings.

So, it’s important to think about how you want to use your Lomandra, the effect you’re looking for and, naturally the local soil and growing conditions.

Fortunately, with such an enormous range of Lomandra available to choose from you’re really spoilt for choice.

lomandra longifolia

Lomandra longifolia are known for their emerald green, flat leaf around 10mm wide, ending with several points at the tip. Their small, creamy-yellow flowers are slightly fragrant and appear in spring to early summer.

lomandra hystrix

Slightly slimmer strappy leaves to Lomandra longifolia, L. hystrix are found naturally occurring around freshwater lakes, rivers and streams, so require a little more irrigation than L. longifolia when planted in the landscape and handle humidity well.

lomandra filiformis

Commonly known as Wattle Matt Rush for its bright yellow, pom-pom wattle-like flowers in spring and summer. L filiformis has a finer leaf width, between 3-5mm so can handle much drier conditions than L. longifolia.

lomandra multiflora

There hasn’t been a lot of breeding for commercial cultivation in this species. It can be broken into two sub species. L.multiflora sub species multiflora’s natural habitat can be found from Southern PNG to Western Melbourne while L. multiflora, sub species dura can be found in Southern SA only.

lomandra conferifloria

L. confertifolia are known for their striking grass tree-like clumping foliage. Unfortunately, they are slower to establish and they are temperamental in the garden, dying with little or no warning.

Our most successful L. confertifolia bred to date has been Wingarra, whose longevity can be attributed to its’ long rhizomes that deeply penetrate the soil.

lomandra fluviatilis

The L. fluviatilis is instantly recognisable by its fine, weeping foliage that is about 3-5mm wide and soft to touch – making it suitable for kid’s playgrounds.

It’s a tough, evergreen Lomandra, highly resistant to phythophthora, that suits many soil types and copes with periodic wet feet.

lomandra labill

Fine, glossy leaves of L. labill can be found in every state and territory except WA and NT. The rich green foliage of this sub species of Lomandra longifolia make it a tough species that looks good year-round.

lomandra lime tuff (Mat Rush)

Lime Tuff is another hybrid that is proving popular. This is a medium sized plant with a very upright compact growth habit. The evergreen lime coloured flat leaves contrast nicely with the small yellow flower spikes.

Growers Guide

Soil Types

Lomandra longfolia varieties are generally speaking the most versatile as they will usually cope with a wide range of soil types from sandy soil to heavy clay.

Confertifolia varieties are usually slower growing and prefer slightly drier conditions. Hystrix varieties frequently do well in wetter humid conditions.

Most Lomandras will cope with a wide range of soil conditions from sandy soil through to clay type soils.

Although some Lomandras such as ‘Lucky Strike’, ‘Shara’ and ‘Evergreen Baby’ are happy in wet soils there are few Lomandras that will cope with permanently wet feet.

We’ve chosen Lomandra varieties that are highly disease resistant. This is particularly important in wetter areas where phytophthora can be a problem for less hardy species.

Nonetheless, you need to choose the right Lomandra for your location and needs. See below for recommended Lomandra species for your region.

Where to Grow

Lomandras, with their range of evergreen and contrasting strappy foliage are perfect for a range of garden and landscaping settings.

Think Mediterranean planting, cottage gardens and line of sight plantings where your eye will be naturally drawn to the rich array of texture, form, and colour.

The highly textured strappy leaves and compact forms make Lomandra a great choice for planting open areas en masse where the movement of the leaves in the breeze and the changing light of day make for a spectacular display. Think border plantings and ground cover.

Our range of Lomandras produce very clean foliage that requires minimal maintenance. These highly disease resistant varieties are not prone to the blemishing and spotting that many other strappy leaved plants display.

Most Lomandras are deep rooting and so make the perfect choice for erosion control, on top of retaining walls or bank plantings. Katie Belles or Katrinus Deluxe are particularly effective in this role. Research indicates soil retention is increased by as much as 366%.

Most of our Lomandra varieties produce sterile seed so they’ll stay where you put them.  They mostly thrive on natural rainwater although may need some watering in severe droughts.

Their hardy no-fuss nature makes them ideal for low or no-maintenance plantings. The exception here is the slow growing confertifolia varieties which don’t compete well with weeds.

Height Guide

Lomandra species come in a wide variety of heights so there’s one for every garden setting.

Getting the height right allows for layering plants to achieve a green wall and to ensure that flowers or contrasting foliage remains visible.

This is particularly important for low maintenance gardens where regular pruning is not an option.

Flowers

One of the special characteristics of Lomandras is the spiky flower head that produces masses of delicate yellow flowers, whilst the ‘Pacific Sky’ is particularly notable for its black flower stem and pale yellow flowers.

Many of the flowers are quite aromatic and will attract the bees. Some of the Lomandras are highly prolific flowerers and will provide a visual treat for many months.

Varieties with a strong highly perfumed flowering display such as Frilly Lace or Tropic Cascade really demand an obvious place as a feature planting.

They’ll also work equally well in a cottage garden setting, line of sight layout or in mass plantings.

Katrinus Deluxe and Great White produce larger sized flowers than is usual with Lomandras; these make a spectacular sight when planted en masse.

Dividing Lomandras

Thanks to its clumping form and rhizomes, Lomandras are easy to propagate by division.

You can simply dig up a healthy plant and divide the plant in half. Remove all the dead foliage and cut back the remaining foliage by half; this reduces transpiration stress on the plant.

Plant the two halves in moist soil.

Todd Layt

Todd was the author of Drought Tolerant Gardening Guide, 2009, ISBN; 978-0-646-50860-3. He has written for the Landscape Contractor and the Landscape Manager magazines for many years.

Todd has managed turf farms and a large production nursery for many years and is the director and owner of Ozbreed Pty Ltd, breeding many native and exotic plants.

Where to Buy

You can buy the Ozbreed range of Lomandras throughout Australia from recognised nurseries as well as online.  You can find your most convenient supplier here.

Ozbreed and Lomandra – celebrate a wonderful Australian plant and make your garden special.

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