Glyceria septentrionalis Hitchc.

Floating Manna Grass; Eastern Manna Grass

Herb

Perennial

Vascular

Eastern Manna Grass is a native herbaceous perennial in the Grass family (Poaceae). It can be found at scattered locations across Alabama. Eastern Manna Grass grows in shallow still water of ponds and lakes, swamps and marshes, roadside ditches, and ox-bow lakes. It is a perennial from a rhizome. The culms are 3-6 feet in height, erect or decumbent and root at the lower nodes. The culms are green in color, round, hollow, and glabrous. Leaves are alternate, linear, entire, glabrous, and scabrous. The sheaths are glabrous and keeled. Flowers are produced in narrow, terminal panicles. The lateral branches of the panicle are erect or ascending. Spikelets are on short pedicels appressed along the lateral branches. Each spikelet has 8-16 florets. The fruit is a grain. Eastern Manna Grass seed are available from some wildlife seed companies. It is planted as a food for Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa).—A. Diamond

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Native OBL (NWPL) G5 (Global Rank)

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