Common Reed

Phragmites australis

Please keep in mind that it is illegal to uproot a plant without the landowner's consent and care should be taken at all times not to damage wild plants. Wild plants should never be picked for pleasure and some plants are protected by law.
For more information please download the BSBI Code of Conduct PDF document.

Plant Data

Flowering Months:

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Order:

Poales

Family:

Poaceae (Grass)

Also in this family:

Annual Meadow-grass, Arrow Bamboo, Bermuda Grass, Blue Moor-grass, Bread Wheat, California Brome Grass, Canary Grass, Cocksfoot, Common Cord-grass, Common Millet, Corn, Couch Grass, Creeping Soft-grass, Crested Dog's-tail, False Oat-grass, Greater Quaking Grass, Hairy Brome Grass, Italian Rye Grass, Knotroot Bristlegrass, Lyme Grass, Marram Grass, Marsh Foxtail, Mat Grass, Meadow Foxtail, Mountain Melick, Pampas Grass, Perennial Rye Grass, Purple Moor-grass, Quaking Grass, Reed Canary Grass, Reed Sweet-grass, Rough Meadow-grass, Six-rowed Barley, Small Sweet-grass, Smooth Meadow-grass, Soft Brome Grass, Sweet Vernal Grass, Timothy Grass, Two-rowed Barley, Wall Barley, Wild Oat, Wood Melick, Yorkshire Fog

Type:

Flower

Life Cycle:

Perennial

Maximum Size:

2 metres tall

Habitats:

Ditches, fens, marshes, mountains, ponds, saltmarshes, waterside, wetland, woodland.

Flower:

Purple, no petals

Purple spikelets composed of 1-6 flowers each.

Fruit:

Numerous light brown seeds are produced in compact clusters on the flowering plumes.

Leaves:

Very long leaves for a grass. The leaf blades can be up to 3cm wide.

Other Names:

American Common Reed, Cane Grass, Common Reed, Common Reed Grass, Ditch Reed, European Common Reed, Giant Reed, Giant Reed, Giant Reed Grass, Hybrid Common Reed, Quilrod, Reed Grass, Roseau Cane, Subtropical Common Reed, Yellow Cane.

Frequency (UK):

Common

Similar Species:

Reed Sweet-grass

Distribution Map

Reproduced by kind permission of the BSBI.

Click to open an Interactive Map