Edge/ Canada Bluegrass

COMMON NAME: Canada Bluegrass

OTHER COMMON NAME(S): English Bluegrass, Wiregrass, Speargrass

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Poa compressa

FAMILY: Poaceae

COMMUNITY: Edge

STATUS: Naturalized from Europe

LIFESPAN: Perennial

HEIGHT: 15 inches

FLOWERING TIME: Late April to late August

FRUITING TIME: Late April to late August

DISTRIBUTION: Newfoundland to Georgia and to West Coast of USA~ Statewide in New Jersey

IDENTIFYING CHARACTERISTICS: Branches mostly in pairs, pointed upwards ~ Leaves pale ~ Stems dark blue-green, flat and broad, wiry ~ Spikelet blue-grayish green ~ Slender long rhizomes

Consider the often quoted rhyme when identifying grasses: “Sedges have edges, Rushes are round, Grasses have joints from their tips to the ground.”

GENERAL INFORMATION: There are about 75 species of Bluegrass in the United States and about 200 worldwide.  The most well known is Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis). Poa is and ancient Greek name for grass or fodder. Canada Bluegrass is a weed of dry, sterile, usually acid soils of open woods, meadows and disturbed places.  It is good pasture grass in poor soil. Canada Bluegrass is sometimes mixed with Kentucky Blue Grass and planted as lawn grass.  This mixture does not produce a first class lawn; it is however, cheaper than Kentucky Blue Grass alone.

Please note: While harvesting wild berries/fruit is permitted at Island Beach State Park, visitors must adhere to park regulations at all times and must not damage vegetation or go off designated trails.  This information is presented for educational purposes.