Cortaderia selloana, commonly known as Pampas Grass or Uruguayan pampas grass, is a tall grass native to the pampas of South America. In North America and Europe it is an introduced species, cultivated as an ornamental grass which is hardy and decorative during winter. The feathery flower heads whend dired are also used in flower arrangements.
Pampas grass is one of the tallest grasses; it grows in tussocks that can reach a height of 4m (13ft). The evergreen leaves are long and slender, but have very sharp edges so should be handled with care. The leaves are usually bluish-green, but can be silvery grey or variegated.
Pampas grass is highly adaptable and can grow in a wide range of environments and climates. It also seeds prolifically, with each plant able to produce over 1 million seeds during its life time. As such, in some areas (for example California and Hawaii) it is regarded as an invasive weed, whilst in New Zealand the plant is banned.
Cultivars
There are several cultivars available, including
Albolineata - a 'dwarf' variety which grows to only 2m in height. The leaves are yellow edged.
The Pampas (from Quechua, meaning "plain") are the fertile South American lowlands that include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, and Córdoba, most of Uruguay, and the southernmost end of Brazil, covering more than 750,000 km² (290,000 square miles).
In October 2001 an estimated 3.5 million hectares (35,000 km²) of the pampas were flooded, with thousands of hectares of fields and grazing lands being submerged.
Pampa is also the name of a river flowing at the foothills of Sabarimala.
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