Crested dog's-tail Cynosurus cristatus

Features

Cynosurus cristatus, the crested dog's-tail, is a short-lived perennial grass in the family Poaceae, characterised by a seed head that is flat on one side.

Species	Perrenial
Living space	Meadow
Size	up to 60 cm

Description

It is perennial with a slighted tufted habit, a slender stem, 15 to 60 cm high, leafy at the base and thus suitable for grazing by sheep.The spikelets are fertile or sterile, mixed within the same cluster. They are oblong or wedge shaped, 3–6 mm long, with 2 to 5 flowers. The ligule is blunt. Leaves are folded in shoot. Leaves are pointed at the tip, flat (not boat-shaped). The lower side of the leaf is smooth, glossy and keeled. The upper side is ribbed. It typically grows in species rich grassland. It thrives in a variety of soil types but avoids the acid and calcareous extremes of pH, and prefers well drained soils.