Citation: Steudel, Synops. Pl. glum. 262 (1854) var. labillardieri.

Synonymy: P. billardieri Steudel (in error): Benth., Fl. Aust. 7:651 (1878).

Common name: Tussock grass.

Description:
Coarse densely tufted green to greyish usually scabrous perennial, very rarely producing a rhizome; culms 30-120 cm high; leaf blades to 80 cm long, flat or rather loosely inrolled, scabrous to scabrous-pubescent.

Panicle 10-25 cm long, rather narrow, with erect or erectly and loosely spreading branches; spikelets mostly 3- or 4-flowered, greenish or purplish, strongly compressed; glumes c. 2-3 mm long; lemmas 2.5-4.5 mm long, usually hairy on the keel and the lateral veins towards the base; web usually copious.

Published illustration: Cunningham et al. (1982) Plants of western New South Wales, p. 134.

Distribution:    Qld; N.S.W.; Vic.; Tas. Conservation status: native Flowering time: Oct. — Feb.

SA Distribution Map based on current data relating to specimens held in the State Herbarium of South Australia

Biology: Vickery stated: "Field observations indicate that P. poiformis occurs only in sites adjacent to the ocean and estuaries where it is under some degree of influence of salt spray. From the landward side P. labillardieri approaches and may even intermingle with it. I have usually had no difficulty in distinguishing them in the field by the smoothness and slightly greater succulence of the leaves of P. poiformis and its more dense, contracted panicles with usually rather larger spikelets and lemmas and rather rougher lemmas". She considered that herbarium material could occasionally not be identified. There are specimens in AD from Mount Lofty identified by Vickery as P. poiformis.

Author: Not yet available