Reed Canary Grass Seed Production Reed Canary Grass Seed Production by Gerald Huebner P.Ag. Able to tolerate flooding for up to two months. It is well adapted to both slightly acidic and slightly alkaline soils, but has no tolerance for salinity. The grass is a long lived perennial, spreads by thick underground stems called rhizomes, and eventually forms a dense sod that is able to support a great deal of traffic even when wet.
Rhizomes grow throughout the summer developing from buds on old rhizomes.
New shoots emerge from rhizome tips and buds. Shoots emerging in spring survive for just that season, but the shoots that emerge in fall generally persist into the next season. Reed Canarygrass begins growth early in the spring before bromegrass or timothy, but after orchardgrass, growth continues throughout the growing season. The elongated stem bears up to nine leaves and supports a spike like panicle. Plants are up to 2 metres tall.