30 November 2005

A Big Black Boy


There are lots of uniques plants in Australia and this is one of them: Xanthorrhoea or "Black Boy"
It is called a "Black Boy" because it looks like a spear in the air with an Aboriginal boy hiding in the bush. The plants are also knows as "balga grass" which is the Aboriginal word for black boy.

As you can see from this photo, the stem can grow quite tall. You will probably have to click the photo to see the details as the stem blends in very well with the trees in the background. This stem is in flower. After flowering the top is black.

The boys have found that the stem when dried makes a great spear or jousting stick, being long, light and relatively straight.

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