I have recently discovered from a Wikipedia article on Altona that there is a reserve called P.A. Burns Reserve that borders Altona Coastal Park. I do not know the exact boundaries of this reserve so in my previous post on Altona Coastal Park, I may have mistakenly labelled some photographs as being taken in Altona Coastal Park instead of P.A. Burns Reserve. Without an authoritative map, I can only make assumptions and may repeat the same mistake in this post.

I recall that there is a location where wildflowers bloom in Spring, covering the coastal areas in a carpet of golden-yellow sheen. We decided to visit the area again and were not disappointed.

P.A. Burns Reserve C

There is a human-created path that leads to the rocky outcrops of the sea.

P.A. Burns Reserve 04

This trip gave us a surprise reward. What would have appeared as grasses to me grabbed my wife’s attention. She could recognize the ears of the plants and was adamant that they are some sorts of wild wheats. When we reached home later, I immediately went online, did Google image searches for wheat and compared with the photos that I had taken. I was elated to confirm my wife’s insistence that these are indeed wheats.


Closeup View of the Wild Wheats, clearly showing their ears
Wild Wheat 2 closeup

These wheats are still green and unripe. My wife guessed they will be ripe by December and we will take a look again. She later discovered that these wheats are quite common along many industrial roadsides in Laverton, on the way to Deer Park.


Wheats in front with trees and yellow wildflowers in the background
Wild Wheat 1