Common Blown Grass - native (Lachnagrostis filiformis)
Alternative names: Agrostis avenacea
Native. Annual or perennial. C3.
Family. Poaceae (Grass family).
It is a widespread grass, generally growing in damp places.
Identification:
- the flowers open to a spreading diffuse cluster
- the glumes are thin and longer than the thinner lemmas
- the single lemma is small and shortly awned
- the leaves are flat, folded or rolled
- the ligule is 2-10mm long.
This grass is easy to recognise. The flower clusters are very open and spreading. As the grass flowers dry, the cluster breaks off and is blown by wind (hence the name, "Blown Grass").
The flowers are small (2-4mm long) with a single lemma. The lemma is unusual in that it is thinner (more membraneous) than the glumes. The flower sprays of the other group with small, membranous lemmas (e.g. Brown-top Bent) do not break off.
1. Spikelet showing glumes and the awned lemma. 2:Recently opened flower cluster. The spray is not yet fully open. 3. Common Blown-grass on the dry bed of Harcourt North Reservoir.
Lachnagrostis was formerely included with Agrostis . An obvious difference between the two is the tendency for Lachnagrostis flower clusters to break off i.e. to be a blown a grass.
Lachnos: wool, agrostis like Agrostis; filiformis: shaped like threads.