Puccinellia

Status:

Native to Turkey. Introduced as a salt-reclamation grass to Australia.

Plant Description:

Tufted, erect, hairless perennial grass to 70 cm tall with slender, smooth, grey to blue-green, flat to loosely inrolled leaves; ligule membranous, blunt, 1-6 mm long.

Inflorescence, a green to purple, narrow to spreading, erect to drooping panicle to 20 cm long and exserted from the upper leaf sheath. Secondary and tertiary branches often lying close to main branches.

Spikelets 5-11 flowered, frequently purple and not or barely overlapping each other at maturity.

Habitat:

Occasionally sown as a pasture species for saline land throughout Victoria. More commonly grown in south Australia and Western Australia.

Comments:

Puccinellia ciliata ‘Menemen’ has been used in Australia since the 1960’s. Other Puccinellia species in Victoria include the natives; Australian Saltmarsh-grass (P.stricta), Lax Saltmarsh-grass (P. perlaxa) and the exotic volunteer; Borrer’s Saltmarsh-grass (P. fasciculata). A simplified key can be accessed here – Key to species.