Lomandra hystrix ‘Katie Belles’

mat rush
Bright green strap leaves with fragrant chartreuse late-spring flowers. Bold, tidy grass-like plant excellent in drifts or pots.
height 3–6ft
width 3–6ft
tolerates Coast, Cold, Cool Summers, Drought, Fog, Pots, Wind
water
needs		 Low – Moderate
water
info		 Water this plant regularly, when the top inch or so of soil feels dry. If you establish this pattern over several years, then you can cut back to watering every week or two in dry weather. Use drippers, emitters, or a slow stream of water so that it doesn’t run off; allow the water to trickle all the way down through the deepest layers of soil. In a pot slowly water the entire surface until water comes out of the bottom of your pot.
hardy
to		 14F
exposure Full Shade – Full Sun
indoor
outdoor		 Outdoor
drainage In Ground: Cactus Mix, In Pots: Cactus Mix
fertilizing All Purpose, Low Needs
origin Australia
california
native		 No
sunset
zones		 7–9, 11–H1

Sunset Zones Map

Outdoor Exposure Guide

OUTDOOR EXPOSURE GUIDE

Full Sun
Six or more hours of sun beams directly landing on the plant's leaves.

Part Shade
Three to five hours of sun beams directly landing on the plant's leaves.

Part Sun
One to two hours of sun beams directly landing on the plants leaves.

Full Shade
The plant is never fully lit by sun beams, but is in a bright spot or has dappled sunbeams playing over the leaves throughout the day.

Deep Shade
The plant never has dappled light on the leaves, and is in a place that feels dim, even on a nice sunny day.

SUNSET ZONES MAP

Growing Notes

Being evergreen, this grassy plant doesn’t need the annual hard pruning of many grasses. It’ll look just fine year round with little work. After many years, when the plants older leaves are being smothered by new ones, a hard pruning in late spring will refresh the clump or you can rake out the older dead leaves.
Maintain the size of lomandra by pulling up the leaves as you would a pony-tail and then cutting them at the desired length. This has little aesthetic affect on the plant, as the leaf tips naturally present with ragged tips.
After blooming, selectively pruning out old flower stalks keeps the clump looking tidy.
Spills handsomely out of pottery, over walls, or down vertical gardens.
More upright and bushy in sun, lower, wider and flatter in shade.

Special Interest

Lomandra is used traditionally by the Aboriginal people of Australia to make nets and mats, thus leading to the common name mat rush.