YELLOW-EYED-GRASS

YELLOW-EYED GRASS

Sisyrinchium californicum

Iris Family [Iridaceae]

month8jun month8june month8jul month8july

status
statusZneophyte
flower
flower8yellow
morph
morph8actino
petals
petalsZ6
stem
stem8round
stem
stem8winged

23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Similar to Blue-eyed-Grass and American Blue-eyed-grass but bright yellow and rarer. Grows about 20cm high.


23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Leaves and stem a similar pale-green with the stem being more linear than the leaves and with two wide wings either side of a very thin central 'stem' rather like a paper wire-wrap with a central wire down the centre.


23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Flowers a bright-yellow (not the pale yellow of the much taller Pale Yellow-Eyed-Grass which has flowers in tight bunches up its stem). The green bracts near top are slightly pinched about an inch down and hide most of the flower stalk (petiole) and the stalks of the fruits. The sepal tube is quite narrow and lacks teeth. A fruit on the left stands almost upright.


23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Flower stalk paper-thin side-ways on. Glaucous-green bracts are arrow-head shaped and hide the flower and fruit stalks. Fruit larger than the sepal tube (hiding behind the fruit). Petals do not have a noticeably cuspidate end like those of Blue-eyed-Grass and American Blue-eyed-grass


23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
This specimens flowers have not yet fully opened out. Six 'petals' (actually tepals) - 3 inner and 3 outer of almost identical sizes - have obvious dark veins on the outer surfaces, and are


23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Three stamens as usual for Iris Family of plants. Anthers orange atop the filament like a 'T-bar'.


23rd July 2016, green beach, Ainsdale, Sefton Coast. Photo: © RWD
Fruits in 3 sections where they eventually split apart.


The Sisyrinchium (Blue-eyed-Grasses) genus should not to be semantically confused with the similar sounding Genus Sisymbrium [Rockets].

Not to be semantically confused with Black-Eyed-Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) a yellow flower belonging to the Dandelion & Daisy Family (Asteraceae). Uniquely identifiable characteristics

Distinguishing Feature : as a Blue-eyed-Grass - it's yellowness!

Easily distinguished from the much taller Pale Yellow-eyed-Grass which has pale yellow flowers which are in lateral cymes (small bunches) up the stem, including a terminal cyme at the top.

More resemblance to both Blue-eyed-Grass (Sisyrinchium bermudiana) and American Blue-eyed-grass (Sisyrinchium montanum) but both of these are blue (rather than bright yellow) and they both have pronounced cuspidate (tapering to a point) tepals (rather than barely perceptibly cuspidate of Yellow-eyed-grass).

No relation to : Grass [plants with similar names].

An introduce-naturalised Neophyte, grown in gardens and which escapes, but is not as often found as the Blue-eyed-Grasses. It is non-native rhizomatous perennial grown as a garden plant which sometimes escapes into the wild. It is native to the West Coast of North America.


  Sisyrinchium californicum  ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ Iridaceae  

Distribution
 family8Iris family8Iridaceae
 BSBI maps
genus8Sisyrinchium
Sisyrinchium
(Blue-eyed-Grasses)

YELLOW-EYED-GRASS

YELLOW-EYED GRASS

Sisyrinchium californicum

Iris Family [Iridaceae]