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1. A spiky flower. But which grass does it belong to?
Sweet Vernal GrassCommon BentRed FescueSquirrel-tail FescueCorrect!Wrong!Sweet Vernal Grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum)
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2. Another spiky one. This grass is found on good quality calcareous grassland and occasionally dunes
Common BentCommon CouchCrested HairgrassAnnual beard-grassCorrect!Wrong!Crested Hairgrass (Koeleria macrantha)
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3. Bit harder...
Common BentTufted HairgrassWood MilletQuaking GrassCorrect!Wrong!Common Bent (Agrostis capillaris)
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4. A funny little stiff thing...
Crested dog's-tailSheep's FescueFern GrassItalian RyegrassCorrect!Wrong!Fern Grass (Catapodium rigidum)
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5. This one doesn't always look this closed up...
Cock's-footCrested Dog's-tailSweet Vernal-grassTimothyCorrect!Wrong!Cock's-foot (Dactylis glomerata)
Here it is when it's open...
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6. Not much to go on with this one...
Rough Meadow-grassRed FescueYellow OatgrassTufted HairgrassCorrect!Wrong!Red Fescue (Festuca rubra)
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7. Not rare, but you don't see it that often...
Meadow BarleySweet Vernal-grassAnnual BeardgrassYellow OatgrassCorrect!Wrong!Meadow Oatgrass (Hordeum secalinum)
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8. Bit of a northerly one...
Purple Moor-grassReed Canary-grassBlue Moor-grassSmaller Cat's-tailCorrect!Wrong!Blue Moor-grass (Sesleria caerulea)
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9. This one is spectacular when it opens up...
False OatgrassReed SweetgrassSmooth Meadow-grassYellow OatgrassCorrect!Wrong!Yellow Oatgrass (Trisetum flavescens)
Here it is closed up...
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10. No clues here...
Wood MelickWood MilletTufted HairgrassRough MeadowgrassCorrect!Wrong!Wood Millet (Milium effusum)
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11. Common, but still lovely...
Crested HairgrassFalse OatgrassYorkshire FogSmooth Meadow-grassCorrect!Wrong!Yorkshire Fog (Holcus lanatus)
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12. Something a bit spiky!
Perennial RyegrassCommon CouchItalian RyegrassMat-grassCorrect!Wrong!Common Couch (Elytrigia repens)
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13. This one's gone a bit over...
Heath GrassBlue Moor-grassTimothyPerennial RyegrassCorrect!Wrong!Heath Grass (Danthonia decumbens)
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14. Ignore the blurry object in the background (no offence to my youngest)
Yorkshire FogAnnual Meadow-grassRed FescueSmooth Meadow-grassCorrect!Wrong!Annual Meadow-grass (Poa annua)
Open head with slightly clumpy florets makes it a Poa, the one-sidedness makes it annua.
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15. This one has been bent over to help... the head is longer than 6cm.
Meadow FoxtailCock's-footTimothySweet Vernal-grassCorrect!Wrong!Timothy (Phleum pratense)
See all those little Devil's horns? The Foxtails have just one awn instead of a pair.
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16. Right, so you can do it when they're flowering. What about when they're not?
Sheep's FescueWavy HairgrassFine-leaved FescueMat-grassCorrect!Wrong!Mat-grass (Nardus stricta)
That's Mr. Grass to you...
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17. Who are you calling hairy knees?
Soft BromeCreeping Soft-grassDowny OatgrassYorkshire FogCorrect!Wrong!Creeping Soft-grass (Holcus mollis)
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18. A wet one...
Reed Sweet-grassBulbous RushCreeping BentFloating Sweet-grassCorrect!Wrong!Floating Sweet-grass (Glyceria fluitans)
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19. A fine leaved grass with a sheath like this...
Sheep's FescueRed FescueWavy HairgrassBristle BentCorrect!Wrong!Sheep's Fescue (Festuca ovina)
The sheath is cloaked around the stem rather than forming a perfect tube in the way Red Fescue does.
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20. No clues here!
Yorkshire FogCommon CouchFalse OatgrassCreeping BentCorrect!Wrong!False Oatgrass (Arrhenatherum elatius)
One of the few grasses with orange tinted roots, plus a distinctive onion like bulge at tis base
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21. Check out the auricle on that! (you might want to cross-reference with the next question)
Sweet Vernal-grassTall FescueYorkshire FogHeath-grassCorrect!Wrong!Sweet Vernal-grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum)
An auricle with a fringe of hairs (best seen at the start of the growing season)
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22. Another hairy fella...
Sweet Vernal-grassHeath-grassDowny OatgrassQuaking GrassCorrect!Wrong!Heath-grass (Danthonia decumbens)
In this grass the auricle is more or less replaced by hairs - looking rather like the nose hairs of an ageing Tory politician/Radio DJ/insert other tired cliché
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23. Deliberately hard - all in the shape of the leaf
Purple MoorgrassPerennial RyegrassSmooth MeadowgrassCommon BentCorrect!Wrong!Common Bent (Agrostis capillaris)
No noticeable central vein, leaf tapers off to a spearlike tip...
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24. Looks like a fescue, until you see those mighty ligules!!
Mat-grassHeath-grassBristle BentWavy HairgrassCorrect!Wrong!Bristle Bent (Agrostis curtisii)
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25. Not much to work with!
Meadow FoxtailSmaller Cat's-tailTimothyFalse OatgrassCorrect!Wrong!Meadow Foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis)
A single awn, unlike the double ones of Timothy and Cat's-tail
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26. There's not many things this big and purple!
Emily Drinkwater
Tall FescuePerennial RyegrassGiant FescuePurple MoorgrassCorrect!Wrong!Giant Fescue (Schedonorus giganteus)
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27. You only have to get this to genus...
BentMeadowgrassOatgrassBromeCorrect!Wrong!Meadowgrass (Poa)
The mythical 'double tramline' central groove runs down the middle of the leaf. There's quite a few impostors to this diagnostic; Glyceria, Meadow Oatgrass to name but two...
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28. I don't think anything can be muddled with this!
Heath-grassWood MilletBristle BentWood MelickCorrect!Wrong!Wood Melick (Melica uniflora)
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29. Not the most exciting grass, but definitely the most dazzling stem base!
Perennial RyegrassYorkshire FogPurple MoorgrassFalse OatgrassCorrect!Wrong!Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium perenne)
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30. Looks hairy, but is it called hairy?
Hairy BromeTall FescueDowny OatgrassTufted HairgrassCorrect!Wrong!Downy Oatgrass (Avenula pubescens)
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31. Aah, the camel's eyelashes... 'Les cils de chameau' as they call them in Morroco (which I just made up)
Hairy BromeSoft BromeUpright BromeDowny OatgrassCorrect!Wrong!Upright Brome (Bromopsis erecta)
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32. And we couldn't leave vegetative ID without this little gem
Perennial RyegrassYorkshire FogCreeping Soft-grassLittle GemCorrect!Wrong!Yorkshire Fog (Holcus lanatus)
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33. Right, now you get to see the whole plant! In theory that might be easier, except often it isn't!
Wood MelickTufted HairgrassWood MilletPurple MoorgrassCorrect!Wrong!Wood Millet (Milium effusum)
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34. Fido?
Barren BromeMeadow BarleyFalse OatgrassWall BarleyCorrect!Wrong!Wall Barley (Hordeum murinum) aka Dogwee Grass
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35. Distinctive late season colour...
False OatgrassYellow OatgrassFalse BromeTor-grassCorrect!Wrong!False Brome (Brachypodium sylvaticum)
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36. On heavier soils...
Tufted HairgrassPurple MoorgrassMeadow OatgrassWood Small-reedCorrect!Wrong!Tufted Hairgrass (Deschampsia cespitosa)
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37. Our only native deciduous grass
Tufted HairgrassBlue Moor-grassPurple Moor-grassReed Canary-grassCorrect!Wrong!Purple Moor-grass (Molinia caerulea)
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38. The most widely distributed grass in the world!
Heath-grassPerennial RyegrassAnnual MeadowgrassCreeping BentCorrect!Wrong!Annual Meadowgrass (Poa annua)
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39. Another yellow one...
False BromeYellow OatgrassTufted HairgrassTor-grassCorrect!Wrong!Tor-grass (Brachypodium pinnatum)
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40. Deliberately arty and not very helpful photo to finish with!
Early HairgrassSquirrel-tail FescueHeath-grassMat-grassCorrect!Wrong!Early Hairgrass (Aira praecox)
The Gigantic Grass Identification Quiz (UK)
Still some way to go! (but it is really hard with only pictures...)
You're getting there!
Top ID skills!
You're a grass genius!!!
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