Annual Cats-tail - introduced (*Rostraria cristata)

 

Native to Mediterannean and the Middle East. Annual. C3.

Family. Poaceae (Grass family).

Identification:

• it is a small (7-50cm) tufted grass
• the flower cluster is dense and spike-like
• the glumes are about as long as the lemmas; the second glume is about as long as the lemmas and is 3-veined; the first glume is shorter and narrower, and is 1-veined
• the spikelets have about 5 lemmas
• the lemmas are shortly notched and a short awn (1-2mm) rises from the tip
• the leaves are flat and softly hairy
the ligules are blunt, becoming torn, and 0.5-1mm long.

The dense compact flower clusters, the relatively small size, and the shortly-awned lemmas are fairly distinctive. Scattered occurrence.

Rostaria: shortly beaked; cristata: comb-like, crested.

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