Invasive Reed Canary Grass is a tenacious, rapidly growing, aggressive, perennial species in the Poaceae (Grass) family. The native Reed Canary Grass is Phalaris arundinacea and the invasive Reed Canary Grass is a subspecies, Phalaris arundinacea subsp. arundinacea (often shortened to Phalaris arundinacea). There are 22 species in the genus Phalaris with many different cultivars and subspecies (at least 115). Some cultivars are bred for agricultural use and are grown for forage and potential biomass crops. The modern cultivars used for forage are considered non-invasive (i.e. ‘Palaton’, ‘Marathon’, and ‘Venture’). Ribbon Grass (P. arundinacea var. Picta or P. arundinacea var. variegata) is used in horticulture. It has white striped leaves and is bred to be sterile; it can become aggressive in some habitats but should not spread far from plantings.

For more information on Reed Canary Grass, download our Best Management Practices and Technical Document using the links below:

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