Seasonal Wild Flowers

Latin name

Cortaderia selloana

Family

Poaceae

Flowering season

August to November

English distribution

It is found throughout the country but is more common

in the South.

See the BSBI distribution map for Pampas-grass

Habitat

It is a neophyte from South America, which has

been grown in the UK as an ornamental plant

since the 1840s, and has been known in the wild

since the 1920s.

In the wild it occurs as a garden throw-out, as a

relic plants and possibly from seed.

It is found in waste places and hedges, and on

dunes and sea-cliffs.

It is an invasive weed in some countries and

banned from sale.

Description

Pampas-grass is a large, perennial grass

growing in dense tussocks up to 3m high and

over 1m wide.

The flowers are in large, spreading, silky, feathery

pannicles up to 1.2m on long stems.

Flowers are in spikelets containing up to 7 florets.

Each floret has 2 hyaline, slightly unequal,

lanceolate glumes topped by a long terminal awn.

Glumes are as long as the spikelet.

Lemmas are bifid and hairy and with long apical

awns.

Florets are either solely female of bisexual

(gynodioecious).

Those shown here are female and do not seed.

The stigmas resemble small, silver, christmas trees.

Leaves are grey-green and up to 2.7m long and

1cm wide.

They have serrated edges and vascular strands.