Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata)
- Cocksfoot is another common perennial grass easy to spot on Cowbar verges and flowers from May to September.
- It is found all over the world and can be an important pasture and hay grass which will withstand heavy grazing.
- The panicle (or flower /seed head) is densely tufted, bluish green and said to be the shape of a cock’s foot.
- It opens up and becomes a more brownish colour as the seeds ripen.
- It is called Meadow Grass in the USA and sometimes called ‘barnyard grass’, or ‘cockspur’. It’s also sometimes known as ‘cat-grass’ because cats enjoy chewing it.
- The stem is flat. The sheath which wraps the stem, has a definite keel shaped edge to it. The leaves are wide and bluish. They are sharp edged and can cause a cut if pulled the wrong way.
- It is an important food source for caterpillars like the gatekeeper, speckled wood, all kinds of skippers, and meadow brown. The seeds are eaten by finches and gamebirds.
- It is a pollen source for pollinators such as Honeybees which will favour cocksfoot pollen over that of many wildflowers.
- Cocksfoot is also valuable habitat for wildlife: bumblebees build their nests in the long grass; carder bees nest in holes, hidden by the stalks.
- The stem has a sweet flavour if chewed.
- Cocksfoot clumps are nesting sites for small mammals, and habitats for amphibians and reptiles.
- The roots of cocksfoot grass go very deep so they help to draw oxygen and water into the soil and can reduce water run-off on farmland.
