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GRASSES OF THE COLUMBIA BASIN OF BRITISH COLUMBIA Heather Stewart, Richard Hebda Major Groups of Grasses Table of Contents Glossary Phragmites Common Reed The genus Phragmites has three species: one native to South America, one native to Asia and the species occurring in British Columbia that is widespread throughout the world in tropical and temperate areas. It is our tallest, and therefore most noticeable, grass species. But the plants are too coarse to be of forage value. The name Phragmites comes from Greek, meaning to grow in hedges, and probably refers to the habit of surrounding streams and ponds in areas where Phragmites is well established.   Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. Phragmites communis (L.) Trin. Common Reed Plant: Phragmites australis is a native species that grows to 2-3 m tall. It is a reedlike perennial with rhizomes. The large feathery flowerhead is purplish early in the season and matures to straw coloured. Leaves and Stem: Stout stems are hollow and smooth. The open sheaths do not have an auricle, are smooth and twist in the wind so that the leaves are to one side of the stem. The ligules are 1.5-3 mm long and consist of half membrane and half hairs. The flat, coarse leaves are 1-4 cm wide. Flowerhead and Flowers: The flowerhead is 15-35 cm long, purplish and has a feathery form. Spikelets are three to six flowered. The second glume is half the length of the first one. The first lemma is unawned, the upper lemmas are smaller and have awns that are nearly as long as the lemma body. The long, silky hairs on the flowerhead arise from the base of the lemma along the branch axis. These hairs are slightly longer than the lemma. Habitat: Common reed grows in marshes, ponds, lakeshores and ditches in lowland to montane zones. In the Columbia Basin, it occurs at Tie Lake, Premier Lake, Fairmont Hotsprings, St Eugene Mission and Brisco. Similar Species: The tall stature and large feathery flowerhead make Common Reed distinctive from all others. However, in a vegetative state Common Reed may be confused with the other tall wetland grasses such as Reed Canary Grass. The ligule of Reed Canary Grass is pointed, long and all membranelike, whereas that of Common Reed has hair along the upper edge and is blunt rather than pointed. The leaf blades of Common Reed are very coarse, and both grasses have rhizomes.

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