Grass Identification for Beginners
Wednesday 19 – Thursday 20 May 2010
Location: Settle, Yorkshire
Tutor: Judith Allinson
Level: Beginner
A two-day workshop offering a thorough introduction to grasses. Day one will introduce flowering parts and vegetative features. Mostly indoors, participants will look at large easy specimens and have short field trips to acid grassland, bog (needle-like leaves) and road verge. On day two, participants will have extensive practice using several different keys (flowering and vegetative features) and go on field visits to basic grassland, neutral hay-meadows, and ruderal habitats near farm buildings.
NB. Accommodation IS NOT included in the cost of this workshop.
IEEM Members £160 (£140 if booked before 19 March 2010).
Non-members £320 (£280 if booked before 19 March 2010).
Further details about the workshop
This is a basic course aimed at beginners. The Settle workroom is a five mminute walk from the railway station. On day 2 if you need transport from the railway station to the farm two and a half miles away we will coordinate this.
Day one will be spent mostly in the workroom at Settle Church Hall and includes parts of a grass flower and vegetative features used in grass identification. We will look at brought-in specimens of ‘eight easy species you can tell with your eyes closed’ – and then attempt to do just that. We will visit NVC types on acid grassland and mire where the diversity of grass species is limited and simple. We can compare grasses, sedges and rushes growing in situ. The lawn and waste ground near the hall offer very common species which are more challenging to identify.
Day two will be spent at Lower Winskill Farm, on a limestone plateau with beautiful views towards Ingleborough. The farmer Mr. Tom Lord will describe the management. We will gain practice in using different grass keys. We will look at NVC indicator species on thin limestone soils, and neutral hay meadows.
Many participants find it useful to make small books and stick some of the specimens in. I will bring some spare A6 books and sticky paper for this.
Timing is approx 10:00 to 17:00. A more detailed timetable will be supplied and also optional activities for anyone staying overnight.
Who should attend this workshop?
- Agriculture advisers.
- Phase 1 and Phase 2 surveyors.
- Environmental consultants who wish to broaden their area of expertise.
- Anyone interested in grasses who has had no, or only a little experience in grass identification.
Anything participants need to know/read before coming on the training event, or need to have with them?
Bring:
- A packed lunch.
- Notebook and pencil.
- Waterproofs and strong footwear.
- A hand lens (at least x 8 magnification). If you have not got a hand lens I recommend a Swiss army penknife (Explorer version). A few hand lenses will be available for loan/sale if you forget your lens.
- Three large plastic bags for specimens (carrier bag size).
- Ten specimens of ONE SPECIES of grass that grows near you, to show other people on the course.
Useful reading:
- Hubbard C E Grasses (Pelican)
- Cope T & Gray A, Grasses of the British Isles (BSBI) 2009.
Other very useful books if you already have one of the above:
- Clapham, Tutin and Warburg Excursion flora
- Stace (any version)
- Collins pocket guide to Grasses, Sedges, Rushes and Ferns by Fitter, Fitter and Farrer
- Collins Identification Guide to Grasses Sedges Rushes and Ferns by Francis Rose
- John Poland J & Clement E. The Vegetative Key to the British Flora (BSBI) 2009
What will participants learn from the workshop (learning outcomes)?
- To enable participants to become familiar with the terminology used in describing the vegetative and flowering parts of grasses.
- To compare the structure of Grasses, Sedges and Rushes.
- To introduce participants to grass keys, and to become more efficient in using them.
- To learn to recognize a selection of grasses, and associate them with certain habitats.