Suomi
Svenska
Rough bluegrass
Poa trivialis
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Rough bluegrass is a tuft-forming grass of damp places. It grows 30–70 cm tall with soft, narrow, light green leaves and thin upright stems that can be slightly purplish at the base. The flower head is a loose, airy spray often tinged reddish-brown or dark purple.
Did you know?
- Its name refers to the slightly rough feel of the leaf bases and the branches of the flower head.
- It is wind‑pollinated and releases its pollen on breezy days.
About the species
Identification
A clump-forming grass without creeping runners, 30–70 cm tall. Stems are thin, upright or slightly leaning, a bit rough near the top, often bluish‑purple at the base. Leaves are flat, soft and narrow (about 3–6 mm), green with possible purple tinge. Where each leaf meets the stem there is a long, pointed, pale flap (about 5–6 mm). The flower head is a 7–15 cm open spray, often reddish‑brown to dark violet, with rough-feeling branches. Compared with Kentucky bluegrass, it forms softer clumps, has a much longer leaf-base flap, and rougher leaf bases and flower branches. Flowers in June–July, sometimes into August.
Plant group
Grasses, sedges and rushes
Habitat
yards and roadsides
Flowering
Jun–Aug
About the habitat
Grows on moist, nutrient-rich ground: grasslands, field edges, meadows, ditches, banks and shores, road verges, and wet springy fens and swampy woods. Often found where the soil stays damp. Common in most of the country; rare in central and northern Lapland.
Sources
Photo: Leonardo Rapisarda, CC BY 4.0 https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/6185227386
Text: Pinkka: BIO-503 Suomen kasvisto ja kasvillisuus - Kulttuuriympäristöt: niityt, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.40459
Text: Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karheanurmikka
