Tridens flavus, known as purpletop, purpletop tridens, tall redtop, greasy grass, and grease grass,[1][2][3] is a large, robust perennial bunchgrass native to eastern North America.
| Tridens flavus | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Genus: | Tridens |
| Species: | T. flavus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Tridens flavus | |
It widespread throughout its range and is most often found in man-made habitats, such as hay meadows and lawns.
The seeds are purple, giving the grass its common name. The seeds are also oily, leading to its other common name, "grease grass". It reproduces by seed and tillers.
The grass is often confused with the similar looking Johnson grass (Sorghum halepense), although it is only distantly related. Tridens flavus is easily distinguished by its short, hairy ligule.
It is a larval host to the common wood nymph, crossline skipper, little glassywing, and the Zabulon skipper.[4]
Gallery
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Individual florets and spikelet
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References
edit- ^ "FSUS- Tridens flavus". fsus.ncbg.unc.edu. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "NameThatPlant.net: Tridens flavus". www.namethatplant.net. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Tridens flavus | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox". plants.ces.ncsu.edu. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.
External links
edit- Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation
- Illinois Wildflowers
- Carrier, Lyman (1917). "False redtop (Tridens flavus; fig 48)". The identification of grasses by their vegetative characters. pp. 24–5. OCLC 8983665.