Weeds of Australia - Fact Sheet

Top Scientific Name Family Common Names Origin Naturalised Distribution Notes

Scientific Name

Phalaris minor Retz.

Family

Gramineae (South Australia)
Poaceae (Queensland, New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory)

Common Names

canary grass, dwarf canary grass, lesser canary grass, lesser canary-grass, little seed canary grass, littleseed canary-grass, littleseed canarygrass, Mediterranean canarygrass, small canary grass, small canarygrass

Origin

Native to northern Africa (i.e. Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia), the Azores, the Madeira Islands, the Canary Islands, southern Europe (i.e. Italy, Yugoslavia, France, Portugal and Spain), western Asia and Pakistan.

Naturalised Distribution

Widely naturalised in southern and eastern Australia (i.e. in southern Queensland, New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and the southern and western parts of Western Australia). Also naturalised on Norfolk Island.

Naturalised overseas in the UK, southern Africa, temperate Asia, the USA, Central America, South America and Hawaii.

Notes

Lesser canary grass (Phalaris minor) is a common weed of crops in the temperate regions of Australia, however it is also regarded as an environmental weed in Victoria and Western Australia.