WA seeding grass

List what type of plants you keep in your aviaries/cages
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Redwing
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Joined: 27 Jun 2010, 21:02
Location: SOR Perth, WA
Location: Perth, WA

Hoping one of the West Aussies might know the answer to this. Was out at Wandi the other day and saw some seeding grass beside the road. Didn't have a camera with me but it has pink seed heads which are really soft and is about 30cm high. Not sure if the birds didn't like it at all or if it just takes a couple of tries for them to get the taste for it. Anyone know what it might be from this vague description?
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VR1Ton
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Location: Far Nth Coast NSW
Location: Far Nth Coast NSW

Sounds like Red Natal Grass
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Craig52
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Location: victoria

Redwing wrote:Hoping one of the West Aussies might know the answer to this. Was out at Wandi the other day and saw some seeding grass beside the road. Didn't have a camera with me but it has pink seed heads which are really soft and is about 30cm high. Not sure if the birds didn't like it at all or if it just takes a couple of tries for them to get the taste for it. Anyone know what it might be from this vague description?
Redwing,i saw that seed grass at Fog Dam and the wild crimsoms were into it.The seed seems to be slightly soft and furry and the plant grows to around 40cm high,from a distance it looks like red natal grass.
Red Natal grass around here grows to around 1mtr tall when seeding,the seeds are separate and clean being a rusty red colour not pink like the one you are talking about and i am yet to find out what the pink one is. Craig
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Redwing
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Location: SOR Perth, WA
Location: Perth, WA

That sounds like the same one crocnshas. The texture is really strange and it almost looks like a flower up close. From a distance it looked like the one (also unidentified) that I pick each spring. I've picked a bit to freeze as there's not much seeding at this time of year and I'm still hopefull that I might have some young painteds soon. They're all in full on nesting mode and have had one clutch hatch only to have the (young) parents stop sitting as soon as they hatched
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Pete Sara
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Location: Byford WA
Location: eastern suburbs of perth w.a

I think I know what your talking about redwing, when I first seen it I thought it was a mutated velt grass, as in the one with the purple seen heads, . let me know if you want some more panic grass as its popping up in the walkway again, I may also have some Johnson grass also... Pete
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Redwing
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Location: SOR Perth, WA
Location: Perth, WA

Hi Pete
I have a very healthy couple of plants thanks to you, that have been seeding for weeks but can't remember which one so would be really interested in starting a patch of the other one. Have a designated garden bed with now with grasses and ferns so everyone's happy, as it looks good as well as being productive.
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Pete Sara
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Location: Byford WA
Location: eastern suburbs of perth w.a

Redwing some research on the Johnson grass maybe required, as it can get out of control I believe , so that should be in pots. last time I was at mackstas house it was popping up in his lawn out the front, but I have a lot of the pit pit seeding if you want I can keep some seed form that to get some going...

Also working on swamp grass, I kept all the seed form a packet I bought and actually got some to germinate, so much for eradiating all seed that comes from the east . Fingers crossed I can keep the roos out of it..pete
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Craig52
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Tiaris
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That one in Craig's photo looks like what locals here call mollasses grass. I think the pink one in WA is one I saw growing when I was over there 18 months ago. It looked like a pinkish/maroon tinted version of veldt oats & was very common at the time around the outer Perth suburbs & the few finch breeders I visited were all using it. The birds were loving it. Some were freezing for later use.
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VR1Ton
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Location: Far Nth Coast NSW
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crocnshas wrote: Redwing,i saw that seed grass at Fog Dam and the wild crimsoms were into it.The seed seems to be slightly soft and furry and the plant grows to around 40cm high,from a distance it looks like red natal grass.
Red Natal grass around here grows to around 1mtr tall when seeding,the seeds are separate and clean being a rusty red colour not pink like the one you are talking about and i am yet to find out what the pink one is. Craig
Red Natal goes from nearly white, through to rusty golden colour, through to pink & red. I think you'll find that photo is still Red Natal, do an image search on Melinis repens & see if it matches what you are looking at.
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