Trichophorum
Deergrasses
Three UK deergrass taxa – two distinct species and their hybrid...
Trichophorum germanicum ~ Common Deergrass
Trichophorum cespitosum ~ Northern Deergrass
Trichophorum ×foersteri ~ Hybrid Deergrass
Pages are linked from a drop-down menu under ‘Deergrasses’ in the banner atop, or from the side-bar to the right** or via the buttons below. Covered are the genus Trichophorum, the species and their hybrid, and there are pages for field ID, stem anatomy [fascinating!], and further information.
[**NB smartphones: the sidebar may be 'at the bottom', when not all links will open: allow screen rotation and view horizontally!]
Northern Deergrass, to which the name Trichophorum cespitosum now specifically applies, is becoming more widely known to UK botanists, but it is still unclear to what extent it is being overlooked, possibly over-recorded, or logged in error when T. germanicum, either as the species, or in an aggregate sense, was intended.
The range of the hybrid Trichophorum ×foersteri can also certainly be extended and infilled (see ⇒Distributions). In some habitats at least, the hybrid greatly outnumbers its parents!
I hope these pages may stimulate interest in the fascinating little plant Trichophorum cespitosum, and clarify its separation from the other two taxa.
Recommended!: a ⇓PDF slideshow details the history, habitats, and identification of deergrasses (50 MB; opens a new window, or can be downloaded).
Select a page from the buttons below, or from the sidebar [right, if available], for.....
... introductory pages:
... two pages on field identification (the meat of this section):
... the internal stem anatomy:
... and extra information:
I am grateful to Michael Braithwaite (long-time BSBI Referee for the genus) for his help and encouragement when I was getting to grips with this genus.