Basket grass facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Basket grass |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Oplismenus
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| Species: |
hirtellus
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Oplismenus hirtellus is a type of flowering perennial plant often called basket grass. It belongs to the Poaceae family, which includes many grasses. You can find basket grass on almost every continent in the world, except Antarctica! It usually grows in warm, wet places like coastal tropical and subtropical areas. It's also common on tropical islands such as Hawaii, New Zealand, Australia, and Madagascar.
What Does Basket Grass Look Like?
Basket grass has a special stalk where its flowers grow. This stalk is usually about 20 centimeters (8 inches) above the leaves. The flowers have sticky, purplish parts called awns. You can typically see these flowers from December to June.
This grass grows up to 30 centimeters (1 foot) tall. Its leaves have small hairs and tiny lines, or nerves, on each side. The underside of the leaves is a bit whitish, and they are quite narrow near the middle vein.
Basket grass can pollinate itself, which means it doesn't always need help from insects. Its seeds are very sticky! This helps them spread easily. They can stick to animal fur and even your clothes, allowing the plant to travel to new places.
Where Does Basket Grass Grow?
Basket grass grows in many parts of the world. It prefers warm, humid climates.
Basket Grass in the United States
In the southeastern United States, Oplismenus hirtellus is considered a native plant. This means it has grown there naturally for a very long time. You can find it in states like Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Oklahoma.
Sometimes, scientists disagree about how to name or classify plants. For example, in Maryland and Virginia, a different type of Oplismenus with white flowers was found in 1996. At first, it was thought to be a subspecies of Oplismenus hirtellus. However, later on, scientists decided it was a separate species called Oplismenus undulatifolius.
In Hawaii, basket grass was first recorded in 1819. Even though it has been there for a long time, it is not considered native to the islands. The basket grass in Hawaii has deep reddish flowers, which suggests it is the tropical Oplismenus hirtellus. Because it has been on the islands for over 150 years, it is called a "naturalized non-native" plant. This means it grows well there, even though it didn't start there. It grows so well in shady forests that it can sometimes take over, which means it might be considered an invasive species.
