Plume-grasses
What are they?
This page covers a group of grasses that can look rather similar due to their feathery flowerheads that typically stand proud above the leaves. These grasses are often tall and can have a rather stately look. The term 'plume-grasses' has been coined for these species, but this is a diverse group of grasses that are not necessarily closely related.
Where are they found?
As a widely diverse group, these plants are found in a variety of habitats and the habitat preference can be useful in determining the species. In particular, a number of species can be found in wetland habitats or in cultivated ground.
Identification
Click here for help with some of the terminology used on the grass pages. Identification of this group is mostly quite straightforward but may require checking details of both the flowers and the leaves and whether the plants form dense clumps or spreading patches.
Common Reed Phragmites australis
A native perennial, common to abundant in all kinds of damp places and well-known as the principle and dominant species of reedbeds, from where it is regularly cut to provide material for thatching. Flowers August to October. Plants 100-300cm in height with strong, creeping rhizomes that produce dense, single-species stands. Leaf blades 10-30mm wide, grey-green, hairless, flat and long-pointed. Leaf sheaths rounded, usually smooth, strongly overlapping around the stem. Ligule a line of long, white hairs. Flower spike narrow when young, spreading before anthesis and remaining open with age; a feathery panicle containing large numbers of spikelets. Spikelets 10-16mm, long and narrow, purplish and with 2-6 florets. Lemmas awnless but finely pointed.
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Reed Sweet-grass Glyceria maxima
A native perennial, common along the margins of rivers, lakes and ponds. Flowers June to August. Plants 90-250cm in height with strong, creeping rhizomes that produce single-species stands. Leaf blades 7-20mm wide, bright green, hairless, flat and abruptly pointed at the tip. Leaf sheaths rounded towards their base, keeled towards the leaf blade, smooth. Ligule membranous but quite stiff, 3-6mm long. Flower spike feathery when young, spreading at anthesis; typically carried well above the leaves on upright stems. Spikelets 5-12mm, oblong to narrowly oblong, slightly compressed, with 4-10 florets. Glumes broadly ovate, membranous. Lemmas 3-4mm long, rounded on the back, obtuse at the tip and having 7 prominent veins.
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Wood Small-reed Calamagrostis epigejos
A native perennial, frequent in Breckland pine plantations and increasingly appearing elsewhere as a colonist on banks and disturbed ground. Flowers June to August. Plants 60-200cm in height, forming extensive, spreading colonies. Leaf blades 4-10mm wide, hairless but rather rough, strongly grooved above, long, flat and pointed. Leaf sheaths rounded, smooth. Ligule membranous, 4-9mm, ragged. Flower spike narrow when young, becoming very open and spreading at anthesis and becoming narrow and upright again with age. Spikelets 4.2-7.5mm with a single floret. Glumes 4.2-7.5mm long, narrowly lanceolate and fine pointed. Lemmas 2.5-3mm with a 1.4-1.7mm awn and surrounded by a plume of white hairs that are longer than the lemma.
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Purple Small-reed Calamagrostis canescens
A native perennial, growing in peaty fens and wetlands, particularly in the Broads and along the Little Ouse corridor. Flowers June to July. Plants 60-120cm in height, forming loose tufts or patches. Leaf blades 3-6mm wide, bright green, gracefully arched, rather rough and with short hairs on the upperside, long, flat and pointed. Leaf sheaths rounded, smooth. Ligule membranous, 2-6mm. Flower spike 10-25cm long, narrow when young, becoming very open and spreading at anthesis and becoming narrow and upright again with age. Spikelets 4.5-7mm with a single floret, reddish-purple in colour. Glumes 4.5-5.5mm long, membranous narrowly lanceolate and fine pointed. Lemmas 2-2.5mm with a tiny awn at the tip and surrounded by a plume of white hairs that are just longer than the lemma.
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Reed Canary-grass Phalaris arundinacea
A native perennial, common to abundant in a wide range of damp places but especially fen and carr habitats and along the edges of permanent water bodies. Flowers June to August. Plants 60-200cm in height with strong, creeping rhizomes that produce dense, single-species stands. Leaf blades 6-18mm wide, green to grey-green, hairless, flat and long-pointed. Leaf sheaths rounded, smooth. Ligule membranous, 2.5-16mm long. Flower spike narrow when young, spreading at anthesis and closing again as the seeds develop. Spikelets 5-6.5mm, whitish or tinted with purple, each with a single, fertile floret and the minute lemmas of two 'lost' florets. Glumes as long as the spikelet, sharply keeled. Lemmas awnless but finely pointed. Remarkably similar to Common Reed in overall appearance, but note the membranous leaf ligule and the structure of the flower spikes. In winter, the dead leaves persist on the old stems, while in Common Reed they drop off, leaving leafless stems.
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Johnson-grass Sorghum halepense
Introduced, probably originally from the Mediterranean region. Appears occasionally from a variety of grain sources but seldom persists for long. Flowers June to October. Plants 100-250cm in height with strong, creeping rhizomes that produce spreading stands which are often invasive in warmer climes. Leaf blades up to 100cm long and 20mm wide, hairless, flat and long-pointed, rough-edged and with a pale midrib. Leaf sheaths rounded, smooth. Ligule membranous, short, ragged. Flower spike very open and spreading at anthesis. Spikelets strangely asymmetrical and distinctive, typically consisting of a pair of spikelets, one stalked, 4.5-6.5mm long and consisting of a single, unawned, male floret; the other unstalked, 4.5-5mm long, awned and consisting of two florets - the lower sterile, the upper bisexual.
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Chinese Silver-grass Miscanthus sinensis
Introduced as a garden ornamental in a variety of forms and occasionally planted in the wider countryside as pheasant cover. Flowers August to September. Plants 60-300cm in height and typically forming dense, compact clumps with stems less than 10mm thick. Leaf blades up to 1m in length and 6-20mm wide, green with a pale midrib, or may be purple or banded with cream in ornamental varieties. Flower spike consisting of a series of long, finger-like spikes. Spikelets 3.5-7mm, each with two florets, the lower sterile, the upper fertile. Lemmas with long, bent awn.
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Giant Silver-grass Miscanthus x giganteus
An artifically created hybrid that is being increasingly planted as a crop to be converted to bifuel. Occasional plants are found on roadsides and rough ground. Flowers August to September. Plants 200-400cm in height, the stems at least 10mm thick. Leaf blades up to 1m in length and 6-20mm wide, green with a pale midrib, or may be purple or banded with cream in ornamental varieties. Flower spike consisting of a series of long, finger-like spikes. Spikelets 3.5-7mm, each with two florets, the lower sterile, the upper fertile. Lemmas without awns.
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Uruguayan Pampas-grass Cortaderia selloana
Introduced from South America as a garden ornamental and occasionally planted in the wider countryside as pheasant cover. May seed itself into rough ground and can be persistent, as on old railway sidings near Great Yarmouth. Flowers September to October. Plants 200-300cm in height and forming dense, compact clumps. Leaf blades up to 3m in length, blue-green, very tough and saw-edged. Flower spike densely plumose. Spikelets 12-16mm, silvery or pinkish, each with 2-7 florets. Lemmas with a long, pointed tip.
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New Zealand Pampas-grass Austroderia richardii
Introduced from New Zealand as a garden ornamental and persisting in dunes at Holkham, where originally planted. Possibly overlooked elsewhere as easily mistaken for the more common Uruguayan species. Flowers September to October. Plants 200-300cm in height and forming dense, compact clumps. Leaf blades up to 1.2m in length, green, very tough and saw-edged. Flower spike densely plumose. Spikelets 12-16mm, silvery or pinkish, each with 2-7 florets. Lemmas with a forked tip and a long awn arising from the centre of the fork.
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