Sporobolus alterniflorus

Salt-water cord grass

Family: Poaceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Salt-water cord grass is a naturalized perennial found in coastal salt marshes of the San Francisco Bay area at elevations below 10 meters. Flowering from July to September, this plant produces small greenish-white flowers in open branching inflorescences 10 to 40 centimeters long. Growing in dense clumps with thick stems 6 to 25 decimeters tall and a robust rhizomatous base, it forms extensive maritime marsh communities. Its leaves are distinctive, with flat blades 20 to 55 centimeters long and 4 to 25 millimeters wide, featuring approximately six parallel ridges on the upper surface. The plant spreads through thick, short rhizomes and creates dense vegetative mats in coastal salt marsh environments.

Habitat: Coastal salt marshes

Bloom period: Jul-Sep

Elevation: < 10 m

Bioregions: CCo (San Francisco Bay)

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.