Reed Canary-grass
Phalaris arundinacea
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The tall grass that takes over a riverbank — greener, earlier and looser than common reed.
A tall, vigorous perennial grass of wet ground with broad flat grey-green leaves and a dense, narrow, branched flower head that is purplish when fresh and straw-coloured later. It is easily confused with common reed but flowers earlier, is a brighter green and has a tighter, more spike-like head. It is common along the Nith, ditches and wet meadows.
Behaviour
It spreads aggressively by rhizome and can form near-monocultures on nutrient-enriched riverbanks and damp meadows, crowding out more diverse wet grassland — a common consequence of fertiliser run-off. It is valuable cover for nesting reed buntings and small mammals, and the dense root mat helps bind and stabilise a bank against erosion.
When to see it
Quick facts
- Family
- Grasses (Poaceae)
- Height
- 60–200 cm
- Status
- Native; common, and dominant on enriched wet ground
Photo by Franz Xaver, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons