Posted: 20/05/2013 at 13:27
Thanks all for your comments and agreements.
The Xanthorrhoea seed is readily available at many nursarys, however, they take approximately 1 year to germinate, and then grow at approximately 2cm per year. Any plants that are nursary grown, are therefore very small.
The plants in the Australian exhibition are clearly very big, and very old (a few hundred years), I would guess they began life before any white people were in Australia, let alone any nursery's to propagate this beautiful plant. The only way to obtain such large specimins, is to dig them up from there natural habitat.
Many nursary's do sell these larger Xanthorrhoea's as potted plants, under the claim that they are 'rescued from imminent destruction' - ie private land owner's, digging them up, selling them on, for easy money. I personally consider this as disgraceful, as clearing sections of the amazon for farm land, and digging out the prize plants.