Deschampsia cespitosa Tufted Hair-grass

A tall, coarse grass that grows over 1m tall in dense tufts sometimes forming large tussocks. The leaves, which are rough (scabrid) and  broader and flatter than other species of Deschampsia, are very sharply saw-toothed along their edges and capable of cutting through skin. It produces attractive, silvery panicles made up of two-flowered, awned spikelets. It is a common species of wet pastures, marshes, and woodland usually on nutrient poor soils with impeded drainage. Most livestock find it unpalatable and it is rarely grazed. It is found throughout West Glamorgan and is sometimes abundant in upland pasture in the South Wales Coalfield. A number of varieties and subspecies have been named, but Deschampsia cespitosa ssp. cespitosa is the most common and the one represented in our area. Deschampsia cespitosa ssp. parviflora has also been recorded in West Glamorgan. It has narrower leaf blades which are less scabrid and smaller spikelets and it is more rerstricted to woodland habitats. However, its characteristic features and ecology overlap widely with those of Deschampsia cespitosa ssp. cespitosa and there is continuous variation between the two.

Native