''Agrostis capillaris'', the common bent, colonial bent, or browntop, is a

rhizomatous In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow ho ...

and stoloniferous

perennial 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 wid ...

in the grass family ( Poaceae). It is native to

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...

and has been widely introduced in many parts of the world. Colonial bent grows in moist grasslands and open

meadows 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 artificia ...

, and can also be found in agricultural areas, roadsides, and invading disturbed areas. The name '' Agrostis'' comes from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

word meaning forage plant, ''agros'' meaning "a field". It is found growing in neutral to acidic soils. It has a very fine texture and like most bent grasses grows very dense. Although this species is used on golf courses, providing some of the best ball playing surfaces in the world, it also produces a spectacular visual appearance when maintained properly. It provides an excellent home lawn but is not tolerant of heavy use. Colonial bent is fairly easy to grow from seeds and fertilization of the lawn is not as intense. This grass also takes longer to establish than creeping bent. However, it does not require the intense maintenance. Many internet sources describe it as being the tallest of the bent species. However, C. E. Hubbard describes its height as ranging from 10 to 70 cm high, whereas the black bent '' Agrostis gigantea'' is 40 to 120 cm. Marjorie Blamey, Richard and Alastair Fitter also describe black bent as being taller.

Description

It forms a dense sward of fine leaves. The ligule is short and does not come to a point. This differs from creeping bent, '' Agrostis stolonifera'' in which it is pointed and up to 5mm long. The flowering panicles appear from May until June. They are finely branched and look like a purple haze from a distance. The panicle persists in winter after the seeds have been shed.

Environmental conservation

''Agrostis capillaris'' forms a constituent of purple moor grass and rush pastures, a type of Biodiversity Action Plan habitat in the UK. This habitat occurs on poorly drained neutral and acidic soils of the lowlands and upland fringe, and can be found in the south-west of England, especially in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

. It is found on upland pastures throughout the UK.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q159717 capillaris Grasses of Asia Grasses of Europe Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus