Polypogon monspeliensis
rabbitfoot grass
Overview
Polypogon monspeliensis is a tufted annual grass growing 6-24 inches (15-60 cm) tall, with soft, flat leaf blades and upright stems. The flower head is a dense, cylindrical, lobed panicle 1-6 inches (2.5-15 cm) long, packed with tiny spikelets that each bear long, slender bristles, giving the whole head a soft, silky, bottlebrush look that fades from pale green to buff as it ripens. The bristly heads are soft to the touch, the feature behind the common name. It grows on damp, often brackish, disturbed ground, including ditches, pond margins, saltmarsh edges, and waste places, and tolerates saline and seasonally wet soils. Native to the Mediterranean region and southern Europe, it has spread as an introduced grass across much of the temperate and subtropical world. As an annual it germinates, flowers, and sets seed within a single season, then dies, the light seed carried by wind and water. It can colonise bare, moist ground quickly and may behave as a weed in irrigated and disturbed sites. Its soft, dense, bristly panicle separates it from the stiffer heads of bent grasses Agrostis spp., to which it is related.
Native Range
Native to the Mediterranean region and southern Europe, and naturalised across much of the temperate and subtropical world. It grows on damp, often brackish, disturbed ground such as ditches, pond margins, and saltmarsh edges.Suggested Uses
Grown occasionally in wildlife and water-margin plantings on damp or brackish ground, and used as a soft-textured annual grass in informal schemes. The fluffy heads are cut for fresh or dried arrangements. It also stabilises bare, moist soil quickly.How to Identify
Appearance
Size & Dimensions
Height6" - 2'
Width/Spread4" - 1'
Bloom Information
Detailed Descriptions
Flower Description
pale green to buffFoliage Description
greenGrowing Conditions
Sun Requirements
Requires 6-12 hours of direct sunlight daily
• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight
• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight
• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight
Water & Climate
Water Needs
Care & Maintenance
Care Guide
Polypogon monspeliensis grows in damp, saline, or disturbed soils in full sun and tolerates a soil pH from about 6.0 to 8.5. As an annual it completes its life within a year, germinating on bare moist ground, flowering, and dying after seeding. It withstands brackish water and seasonal flooding that many grasses do not. The plant needs no feeding and self-seeds freely where soil stays open and damp. It grows quickly and can crowd bare ground in a single season. In drier soils plants stay smaller and flower earlier.Pruning
No pruning is needed for this annual grass. Plants can be pulled or mown after flowering to limit self-seeding, or left to shed seed. Spent plants die back at the end of the season.✓ Toxicity
Non-toxicPlanting Guide
Planting Methods & Timing
Planting Method
direct sow