Japanese Stiltgrass Flower
In the fall leaves turn dark and the plant dies.
Japanese stiltgrass flower. Flowers have 1 to 3 spikes with the flowers clustered along the spike. Japanese stiltgrass flowers are both cleistogamous self pollinating and chasmogamous cross pollinating to take full advantage of the wind for pollen transport for fertilization. Japanese stiltgrass spreads exclusively by seed. Like most other annual invasive plants japanese stiltgrass seed is small and highly mobile usually arriving in new areas accidentally on contaminated surfaces such as vehicles.
Each plant can produce up to 1 000 seeds annually. How to identify japanese stiltgrass. Japanese stiltgrass microstegium vimineum also called nepalese browntop is an aggressive invader of forest lands throughout the eastern united states infestations can impact the diversity of native species reduce wildlife habitat and disrupt important ecosystem functions. Yellow to reddish seeds are shed in late fall.
Japanese stiltgrass also known as bamboograss flexible sesagrass japanese grass mary s grass microstegium nepal microstegium nepaleze browntop or vietnamese grass is a summer annual commonly found in shady moist areas and is spreading rapidly in woodlands as well as shaded landscapes and low maintenance turf throughout the southeastern united states mid atlantic states and north. Annual grass reaching up to 1 1 m tall. Despite being non native in the united states it serves as a host plant for some native satyr butterflies such as the carolina satyr hermeuptychia sosybius and the endangered mitchell s. The seeds are viable for up to 5 years and can survive a 2 month water immersion.