| Author | Roth | |
| Distribution | Throughout the state, no doubt in every county. Rare on the Outer Banks, where known only from Roanoke Island in Dare County, and apparently rare in the Sandhills proper.
Native to Eurasia; widespread in N.A., in the east south to FL and LA. | |
| Abundance | Common. | |
| Habitat | Roadsides, pastures, fields, meadows, disturbed places. | |
| Phenology | Flowering and fruiting June-October. | |
| Identification | Redtop Bentgrass is our tallest bentgrass, reaching 3-4 feet, but often much shorter. Like A. stolonifera and A. capillaris, it has a palea at the base of the lemma. From capillaris it differs in its longer ligule on stem leaves (2-7 mm long vs. less than 3 mm long). From stolonifera it differs in not having surficial stolons (vs. stolons present), possessing rhizomes (vs. absent), and having a more open panicle. | |
| Taxonomic Comments | A synonym is A. stolonifera var. major. Specimens have also been determined as A. alba, but this name is misapplied.
Bentgrasses, genus Agrostis, in NC are usually densely cespitose (many stems and basal leaves from a central area). Most leaves are basal, rather short, and slender, often folded lengthwise or involute (rounded in cross-section). Stem leaves are few in number. The inflorescence is open and airy or wispy, with 2-several branches from well-spaced nodes; towards their ends, these branches are again branched and support the spikelets. Spikelets each contain only a single floret, with 2 glumes (outer scale-like bodies) and one lemma (inner scale-like body) and a central fruit or seed. Glumes and lemmas are sharp pointed. Lemmas may or may not have a projecting awn. In grasses, the fruit is called a caryopsis or a grain; it is composed of the seed and a tightly fitting envelope (or pericarp). | |
| Other Common Name(s) | Often simply named as Redtop. | |
| State Rank | SE | |
| Global Rank | G4G5 | |
| State Status | | |
| US Status | | |
| USACE-agcp | FACW link |
| USACE-emp | FACW link |
