Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or

lawn A lawn is an area of soil-covered land planted with grasses and other durable plants such as clover which are maintained at a short height with a lawnmower (or sometimes grazing animals) and used for aesthetic and recreational purposes. ...

, in

meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or artif ...

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

s, and prairies. As

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

s, most species live more than one season. Tussock grasses are often found as

forage Forage is a plant material (mainly plant leaves and stems) eaten by grazing livestock. Historically, the term ''forage'' has meant only plants eaten by the animals directly as pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, but it is also us ...

pasture Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or s ...

s and ornamental grasses in gardens. Many species have long roots that may reach or more into the soil, which can aid slope stabilization, erosion control, and soil porosity for precipitation absorption. Also, their roots can reach moisture more deeply than other grasses and annual plants during seasonal or climatic droughts. The plants provide

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

and food for insects (including Lepidoptera), birds, small animals and larger

herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthp ...

s, and support beneficial soil mycorrhiza. The leaves supply material, such as for

basket weaving Basket weaving (also basketry or basket making) is the process of weaving or sewing pliable materials into three-dimensional artifacts, such as baskets, mats, mesh bags or even furniture. Craftspeople and artists specialized in making basket ...

, for

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

and

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic co ...

ists. Tussock and bunch grasses occur in almost any habitat where other grasses are found, including: grasslands, savannas and

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

wetlands A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free ( anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

and

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environme ...

riparian zone A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks ...

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It ...

s and scrublands,

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

s and

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

montane Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...

and alpine zones,

tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless mo ...

and

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...

s, and deserts. East-Falkland

Fire resistance

In western North American

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

s, bunch grasses tend to smolder and not ignite into flames, unlike

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species adv ...

of annual grasses that contribute to a fire's spreading.

Genera

:Examples: *''

Brachypodium ''Brachypodium'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, widespread across much of Africa, Eurasia, and Latin America. The genus is classified in its own tribe Brachypodieae. Flimsy upright stems form tussocks. Flowers appear in compact s ...

'' *'' Calamagrostis'' *''

Chionochloa ''Chionochloa'' is a genus of tussock grass in the family Poaceae, found primarily in New Zealand with one known species in New Guinea and another on Lord Howe Island (part of Australia). Some of the species are referred to as snowgrass. Most of ...

'' *'' Deschampsia'' *''

Festuca ''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on e ...

'' *'' Heteropogon'' (tropical climates) *''

Leymus ''Leymus'' is a genus of plants in the grass family Poaceae (Gramineae). It is widespread across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. * '' Leymus aemulans'' - Xinjiang, Central Asia * '' Leymus ajanensis'' - Siberia, Russian Far East, Alaska * ''L ...

'' *''

Melica ''Melica'' is a genus of perennial grasses known generally as melic or melic grass. They are found in most temperate regions of the world. Melic grasses are clumping to short-rhizomatous grasses. They have flowering culms up to tall bearing ...

'' *'' Muhlenbergia'' *'' Nassella'' *'' Stipa'' *'' Triodia'', formerly ''Plectrachne'' (Australia)

Species

Australia

*''

Gymnoschoenus sphaerocephalus ''Gymnoschoenus sphaerocephalus'', commonly known as buttongrass, is a species of tussock-forming sedge from southeastern Australia. It forms part of a unique habitat in Tasmania. It was originally described as ''Chaetospora sphaerocephala'' by ...

'' – button grass *'' Joycea pallida'' – red anther wallaby grass *'' Poa labillardierei'' – common tussock-grass *''

Poa sieberiana ''Poa sieberiana'', commonly known as grey tussock-grass and snow grass, is a species of tussock grass that is endemic to Australia. The species was formally described in 1827 by German botanist Kurt Sprengel in ''Systema Vegetabilium''. Refe ...

'' – grey tussock-grass

New Zealand

*''

Chionochloa australis ''Chionochloa'' is a genus of tussock grass in the family Poaceae, found primarily in New Zealand with one known species in New Guinea and another on Lord Howe Island (part of Australia). Some of the species are referred to as snowgrass. Most of ...

'' – carpet grass *''

Chionochloa flavescens ''Chionochloa flavescens'', known as broad-leaved snow tussock or haumata in Māori. Endemic to New Zealand, there are several different sub species that look very similar. The leaves which are up to one centimetre wide is larger than most tussoc ...

'' – snow tussock *''

Chionochloa oreophila ''Chionochloa'' is a genus of tussock grass in the family Poaceae, found primarily in New Zealand with one known species in New Guinea and another on Lord Howe Island (part of Australia). Some of the species are referred to as snowgrass. Most of ...

'' – snow-patch grass *''

Chionochloa rubra ''Chionochloa rubra'', known commonly as red tussock grass, is a species of tussock grass in the grass family, endemic to New Zealand. Description New Zealand has 22 endemic species of ''Chionochloa'', including ''Chionochloa rubra'', which ha ...

'' – red tussock *''

Festuca novaezelandiae ''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on ev ...

'' – fescue tussock or hard tussock *''

Poa cita ''Poa cita'', commonly known as the silver tussock, or wī, which is also the Māori name, is a grass of the family Poaceae that is native to New Zealand. ''Poa cita'' was described and named by Elizabeth Edgar in 1986, having previously being nam ...

'' – silver tussock *''

Poa colensoi ''Poa colensoi'', the blue tussock, is a species of cool-season grass in the family Poaceae Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the ...

'' – blue tussock *''

Poa foliosa ''Poa foliosa'' is a species of tussock grass commonly known as muttonbird poa. It is native to the subantarctic islands of New Zealand and Australia. Description ''Poa foliosa'' is a perennial, dioecious grass growing as densely clumped tu ...

'' – muttonbird poa

North America

:Bunch grasses: * '' Aristida purpurea'' – purple three-awn * '' Bouteloua gracilis'' – blue grama * ''

Calamagrostis foliosa ''Calamagrostis foliosa'' is a species of grass known by the common name leafy reedgrass. It is endemic to northern California, where it grows in the forests and scrub on the coastline. Description ''Calamagrostis foliosa'' is perennial bunchgr ...

'' – leafy reedgrass (

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

to California) * '' Calamagrostis nutkaensis'' – Pacific reedgrass * '' Calamagrostis purpurascens'' – purple reedgrass * '' Danthonia californica'' – California oatgrass * ''

Eriophorum vaginatum ''Eriophorum'' (cottongrass, cotton-grass or cottonsedge) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cyperaceae, the sedge family. They are found throughout the arctic, subarctic, and temperate portions of the Northern Hemisphere in acid bog ...

'' – hare's-tail cottongrass * ''

Festuca californica ''Festuca californica'' is a species of grass known by the common name California fescue. This fescue species is native to the U.S. states of California and Oregon, where it is a member of many plant communities, including chaparral and oak wo ...

'' – California fescue * '' Festuca idahoensis'' – Idaho fescue * '' Festuca rubra'' – red fescue * '' Koeleria macrantha'' – junegrass * '' Leymus condensatus'' – giant wildrye * '' Melica californica'' – California melic * ''

Melica imperfecta ''Melica imperfecta'' is a species of grass known by the common name smallflower melic and little California melic. It is native to the Arizona, California, and Nevada in the United States and Baja California in Mexico. It grows in chaparral, wo ...

'' – smallflower melic * '' Muhlenbergia rigens'' – deer grass * '' Nassella lepida'' – foothill needlegrass * '' Nassella pulchra'' – purple needlegrass (the state grass of California) * '' Poa secunda'' – pine bluegrass * '' Sporobolus heterolepis'' – prairie dropseed * '' Sporobolus virginicus'' – salt couch grass * ''

Tripsacum dactyloides ''Tripsacum dactyloides'', commonly called eastern gamagrass, or Fakahatchee grass, is a warm-season, sod-forming bunch grass. It is widespread in the Western Hemisphere, native from the eastern United States to northern South America.

'' – eastern gamagrass

South America

*'' Deschampsia cespitosa'' – tufted hair-grass (up through North America) *''

Nassella trichotoma ''Nassella trichotoma'', the serrated tussock, is a type of bunchgrass plant, native in Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, and Peru. It is on the list of Weeds of National Significance in Australia, reducing the productivity of pasture and creating a fi ...

'' – serrated tussock (common pasture

weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place", or a plant growing where it is not wanted.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. ...

in Australia) *''

Poa flabellata ''Poa flabellata'', commonly known as tussac grass or just tussac, is a tussock grass native to southern South America, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and other islands in the South Atlantic. There are also two isolated records from the herb ...

'' – tussac grass ( synonyms: ''Parodiochloa flabellata'', ''Festuca flabellata'', ''Dactylis caespitosa'') Flora near Keetmanshoop, Namibia

Africa

*'' Heteropogon contortus'' – perennial tussock grass (to Asia, Australasia, Oceania)

Europe

*'' Ampelodesmos mauritanicus'' – rope grass *'' Brachypodium sylvaticum'' – false-brome *'' Molinia caerulea'' – purple moor grass (to west Asia and north Africa)

References

External links

California Native Grasslands Association
Bunchgrass species & habitats: preservation & restoration * http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/identification/plants/grass-key {{Authority control Grasses Biogeography Poaceae Grasslands