Horticultural cultivars (sometimes called “ribbon grass”) may sport green and white striped leaves. Flowers are green to purple, but fade to beige as seeds ripen. Its stem and leaves are bluish-green in color with tapering leaf blades, and has dense clustered flowers that bloom May-mid June. Reed canary grass is a large, coarse grass which grows 2-9 feet tall.

Reed canary grass is known for its large single-species stands (“monocultures”) and the ability to withstand floods and drought. Furthermore, the dense stands of reed canary grass are very unwelcoming to waterfowl and as a result waterfowl do not frequent areas with purple loosestrife. This can dry up a shallow water habitat and make it into a terrestrial area, destroying the habitat for native aquatic animals that have been living there. When reed canary grass enters an area, its numerous stems can collect debris such as silt (sedimentation). This grass grows both through seed spread and using creeping stems (“rhizomes”), which allows the plant to grow quickly and thickly. Like most invasive plants, reed canary grass threatens to replace native plants in high quality natural areas, especially wetlands, which in turn reduces critical food resources for birds, butterflies, and other wild creatures. Introduced as an ornamental garden plant from Europe, often called 'ribbon grass.'

Canary grass