Couch Grass - introduced (*Cynodon dactylon)

Introduced. Perennial. C4.

Family. Poaceae (Grass family).

Identification:

• it is a creeper
• the flowers are on terminal radiating arms
• the arms are only about 5cm long (much less than the other local windmill grasses)
• the spikelets have 2-3 florets
• the glumes about as long as the lemmas
• the lemmas are unawned
• the leaves are mostly flat
• the ligules to 0.5mm long with short hairs.

It spreads by wiry shoots, which may be above ground or underground. It makes a tough lawn, and is a familiar garden weed. Couch Grass is a windmill grass: the flowers are stalkless on radiating arms.

Kikuyu and Buffalo Grass are also spreading grasses. These have much thicker stems, and the flowers are not on radiating arms.

The slender wiry runners, and the small radiating arms with unawned flowers are distinctive.

It is an environmental weed.

Variety pulchellus which grows near the Murray River, is thought to be a native (and endemic i.e. confined to Australia) variety of Couch Grass.

kynodon: dog's tooth (Greek), referring to the French name for this grass; dactylon: fingers.

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