categoryZGrasses Grasses List 

HAIRY BROME

HAIRY-BROME

Bromopsis ramosa

Grasses Family [Poaceae]

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category
category8Grasses
status
statusZnative
flower
flower8green
inner
inner8white
inner
inner8purple
type
typeZspiked
stem
stem8round
stem
stem8ribbed

15th July 2014, nr. Hope, Dark Peaks. Photo: © RWD
The underground rhizomes are very short but the culms reach up to 2m in length! (which seems to be the longest any Brome of whichever of the 4 'Brome' genera [Ceratocloa (American Bromes), Brompsis (Hairy-bromes), Anisantha (Barren-bromes) and Bromus (Bromes)] can achieve - the next highest seems to be 1.5m for Hungarian Brome (Bromopsis inermis) and one of the 5 sub-species of Soft Brome (namely ssp. longipedicellatus). The next highest are 1.2m for Lesser Hairy-brome (Bromopsis benekenii) and the same height achievement for Upright Brome (Bromopsis erecta).


15th July 2014, nr. Hope, Dark Peaks. Photo: © RWD
The numerous panicles weigh the thin stem such that it curves over with panicles pendant (when mature).


15th July 2014, nr. Hope, Dark Peaks. Photo: © RWD


15th July 2014, nr. Hope, Dark Peaks. Photo: © RWD


15th July 2014, nr. Hope, Dark Peaks. Photo: © RWD
The stems have fine ridges. The lemmas (the longest of the two bracts at the end of the floret) are 10 to 14mm long, the awns (the long hair at the end of the floret) 4 to 8mm. The sheaths around the lower parts of the stem are usually hairy with long down-pointing hairs hence the name (sorry, no photos of the hairs).


15th July 2014, nr. Hope, Dark Peaks. Photo: © RWD
Grassy leaves.


Not to be semantically confused with Broom (Cytisus scoparius) a bushy and much taller plant with yellow flowers.

This is the tallest (longest) Brome at 2m long.

It is native and to be found in and at the edges of woods, in hedgerows, occurring frequently in lowland Britaish Isles except the very furthest islands north and south (the Outer Isles and Channel Islands).


  Bromopsis ramosa  ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ Poaceae  

Distribution
 family8Grasses family8Poaceae
 BSBI maps
genus8Bromopsis
Bromopsis
(Bromes)

HAIRY BROME

HAIRY-BROME

Bromopsis ramosa

Grasses Family [Poaceae]