SafePlants

Quaking Grass: A Delicate Beauty

Quaking grass, with its distinctive trembling spikelets, adds a touch of whimsy to meadows, grasslands, and gardens. Its graceful nodding heads have made it a favorite among flower arrangers.

Considerations for Pets

• The plant has thin stems.
• The flower heads hang like scaly heart-shaped lockets.
• The florets dangle on very thin stalks which are twisted and contorted.
• The plant produces seeds.

Considerations for Children

• The plant has thin stems.
• The flower heads hang like scaly heart-shaped lockets.
• The florets dangle on very thin stalks which are twisted and contorted.
• The plant produces seeds.

Scientific Name and Common Names

• Scientific Name: Briza (genus)
• Common Names: Quaking grass, rattlesnake grass, totty grass, blowfly grass, fairy bells, giant shivery grass, lady's heart grass

Taxonomy and Nomenclature

• Family: Poaceae (grass family)
• Briza maxima L.
• Briza media
• Briza minor L.

Distribution and Habitat

• Native to northern temperate regions of Eurasia and North Africa, including certain islands.
• Common in meadows and grasslands, particularly those on chalky soils.

Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits

• Annual and perennial plants.
• Height: Typically reaches heights of 15 to 60 cm (approximately 6 to 24 inches).
• Leaves: Blue-green leaves (in Briza maxima).
• Flowers: Delicate, branched heads with trembling or 'quaking' spikelets; heart-shaped greenish-purple spikes.
• Growth Habit: Clump-forming and spreads relatively slowly.
• Florets: Flattened in one direction, rhombic in outline.

Quirky Facts

• One common name, "totty grass," was used in Surrey Wantage, Oxfordshire, c.1960.
• The flower heads jiggle at the ends of wire-thin stems like hovering raindrops.

Ecological Role

• The aerodynamically unstable florets dangle on thin, twisted stalks.

Further Information

• RHS (Royal Horticultural Society)
• Dave's Garden
• Encyclopaedia Britannica