5 April 2012 – Focus on Needle Grass

Posted on 3 April, 2012 by Connecting Country

Malmsbury Landcare Group will be hosting a public meeting this Thursday called ‘Focus on Texas Needle Grass’. The purpose of the meeting is to raise awareness of the threat this exotic grass poses to agricultural and public land in the area and to discuss how to respond to the threat. Representatives from the DPI and Shire council will be attending and speaking.

The meeting will be held at Malmsbury Town Hall on Thursday 5^th April at 7:30pm. Anybody in our region concerned about the spread of exotic Needle Grasses is invited to attend.

Texas Needle Grass is almost identical to Chilean Needle Grass. If you are concerned about the existence of exotic Needle Grass in your area, or you are not sure how to identify them (they can look very similar to the native Spear Grass) there are good resources available to help. Our own region’s Chilean Needle Grass (Exotic Needle Grasses) Working Group has produced a comprehensive ‘Invasive Stipa [Needle Grass] Action Manual’, which can be accessed on the Chilean Needle Grass Working Group page on the Connecting Country Website (click here). Information on identification and management options can also be found on the DPI website (click here) and the Weeds Australia website (click here).