NEN Gallery

A species of cordgrass that originated in southern England in about 1870. It is an allotetraploid species derived from the hybrid Spartina � townsendii, which is a hybrid between the European native small cordgrass (Spartina maritima)and the introduced American Smooth Cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing 0.4-1.3 m tall, yellowish green in spring and summer, and turning light brown in autumn and winter. The leaves are 20-60 cm long, and 1.5 cm broad at the base, tapering to a point. It produces flowers and seeds on only one side of the stalk. The flowers are a yellowish-green, turning brown by the winter. Its dense roots were thought to assist with coastal erosion. New colonies may take some time to become established, but once they do, vegetative spread by rhizomes is rapid, and can smother natural ecosystems. Picture taken at Salthouse, Norfolk 21st September 2010.