#832 - Kingia australis - Bullanock
Despite appearances, this is NOT a Grasstree. Kingia is in the Dasypogonaceae family, whereas Xanthorrhoea is in the Xanthorrhoeaceae. But apart from the flowers, the two genera are so similar that for a long time they were thought to be female Grasstrees.
Kingia flowers are borne on up to 100 curved stalks sprouting around the crown.The pseudotrunk - a mass of leaf bases - grows extremely slowly, increasing in height by about 1½ centimetres per year. It can live for centuries, however, so 400 year old plants with a height of six metres are not unusual.
The older plants are very distinctive - none of the grass trees are that tall or slender around here. I see them on the floodplains closer to the Darling escarpment, myself - this one was growing right at the southern end of the Tonkin Freeway in Byford.