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Agrostis stolonifera L. |
 
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Graminae Agrostis alba auct. non. L. |
Author: Alain Peeters |
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Creeping bent (English), Agrostis stolonifere (French), Fioringras (German). Perennial plant, small size, hairless, stoloniferous. Stems ascendent, 10 - 60 (- 100) em high. Blade rolled when young, narrow (1 - 6 mm). Ligule long (2 - 8 m-m), longer than wide, lanceolate, with a rounded top. No auricles. Panicle-like, loose inflorescence, wide, contracted after flowering, 2 - 15 cm long. Spikelets 1-flowered. The weight of 1000 seeds is 0.06 to 0.09 g (small seeds). Chromosome number: 2n = 28. Physiological peculiarities: A. stolonifera hybridizes with A. capillaris. Found in meadows, on sand, on salted mud as well as in boggy places of fresh water. Mostly in lowland but can grow quite high in mountains, on river banks, on fertile alluvium. Tolerates cold and shade especially in old orchards. Mostly found in continental climates. Mostly in wet climates but wide distribution. Has a clear preference for fresh to wet soils. Can even thrive on the surface of ponds where its floating leaves can sometimes cover areas of hundreds of square-meters. More demanding than A. capillaris, thrives on mesotrophic soils and often on rich or even very rich soils. The fresh or wet soils where it is abundant often have a high organic matter content and some of them are really peaty. Tolerates a large range of acidity, except very acid soils. The conditions of freshness and moisture that are ideal for this bent are found on alluvium, colluvium, peat (pure or mixed with mineral matters), clay soil, impermeable schist, ... or even humus-rich sand if the water table is close to the surface. From a topographic point of view, the sites of A. stolonifera are often found in valleys, on shady hillsides, on slopes where springs appear and in wet plains. Native to temperate and cold areas of the northern hemisphere. |