Mat-grass - Nardus stricta
This is a densely tufted, wiry plant with one-sided flower-spikes that are purplish when fresh. The leaves are hard and bristle-like forming a basal rosette.
Very slender and wiry; leaves inrolled. Slender stiff flower-spikes, one sided, purple when fresh, pale when old. Lemmas very narrow and pointed.
Good photos needed, showing the habitat and plant details. (RPR)
Thrives in poor soil and overgrazed areas. Often found on moorland and high ground and on heath grassland.
Flowers June to August.
Perennial.
Widespread and frequent in most upland areas of Britain, more local elsewhere.
Local in Leicestershire and Rutland and mainly confined to the Charnwood Forest area.
In the Flora of Leicestershire (Primavesi and Evans 1988) it was found in 28 of the 617 tetrads.
| It is listed on the current VC55 Rare Plant Register (Hall and Woodward 2022) because of its threat-level |
Graham Calow
Burbage Common and Woods
20 June 2014
David Nicholls
Bradgate Park
05 July 2013
David Nicholls
Bradgate Park
05 July 2013
Graham Calow
Bradgate Park
15 June 2014
Graham Calow
Burbage Common and Woods
20 June 2014
David Nicholls
Bradgate Park, Newtown Linford
20 July 2023
Steve Mathers
Beacon Hill CP
22 February 2017
winter appearance
Leicestershire & Rutland Map
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Species profile
- Common names
- Mat-grass
- Species group:
- flowering plant
- Kingdom:
- Plantae
- Order:
- Poales
- Family:
- Poaceae
- Records on NatureSpot:
- 33
- First record:
- 10/05/2007 (Dave Wood)
- Last record:
- 03/09/2024 (Lindsi Donovan)
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% of records within its species group
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