Agrostis
# Agrostis

Agrostis (bent or bentgrass) is a large and very nearly cosmopolitan genus of plants in the grass family, found in nearly all the countries in the world. It has been bred as a GMO creeping bent grass.

## Species

* Agrostis aequivalvi (Arctic bent)
* Agrostis agrostiflora
* Agrostis alpina
* Agrostis ambatoensis
* Agrostis × amurensis
* Agrostis anadyrensis
* Agrostis angrenica
* Agrostis arvensis
* Agrostis atlantica
* Agrostis australiensis
* Agrostis bacillata
* Agrostis balansae
* Agrostis barceloi
* Agrostis basalis
* Agrostis bergiana
* Agrostis bettyae
* Agrostis × bjoerkmannii
* Agrostis blasdalei
* Agrostis boliviana
* Agrostis boormanii
* Agrostis bourgaei
* Agrostis boyacensis
* Agrostis brachiata
* Agrostis brachyathera
* Agrostis breviculmis
* Agrostis burmanica
* Agrostis calderoniae
* Agrostis canina (velvet bent)
* Agrostis capillaris (common bent, browntop)
* Agrostis carmichaelii
* Agrostis castellana (highland bent)
* Agrostis × castriferrei
* Agrostis clavata (northern bent)
* Agrostis × clavatiformis
* Agrostis clemensorum
* Agrostis comorensis
* Agrostis congestiflora
* Agrostis continuata
* Agrostis curtisii (bristle bent)
* Agrostis cypricola
* Agrostis decaryana
* Agrostis delicatula
* Agrostis delislei
* Agrostis densiflora (California bent)
* Agrostis diemenica
* Agrostis dimorpholemma
* Agrostis divaricatissima
* Agrostis dshungarica
* Agrostis durieui
* Agrostis dyeri
* Agrostis elliotii
* Agrostis elliottiana
* Agrostis emirnensis
* Agrostis eriantha
* Agrostis exarata (spike bent)
* Agrostis exserta
* Agrostis filipes
* Agrostis flaccida
* Agrostis foliata
* Agrostis × fouilladeana
* Agrostis gelida
* Agrostis ghiesbreghtii
* Agrostis gigantea (black bent, redtop)
* Agrostis × gigantifera
* Agrostis glabra
* Agrostis goughensis
* Agrostis gracilifolia
* Agrostis gracililaxa
* Agrostis griffithiana
* Agrostis hallii
* Agrostis × hegetschweileri
* Agrostis hendersonii
* Agrostis hesperica
* Agrostis hideoi
* Agrostis hirta
* Agrostis holgateana
* Agrostis hookeriana
* Agrostis hooveri
* Agrostis howellii
* Agrostis hugoniana
* Agrostis humbertii
* Agrostis humilis
* Agrostis hyemalis (winter bent)
* Agrostis hygrometrica
* Agrostis idahoensis
* Agrostis imbecilla
* Agrostis imberbis
* Agrostis inaequiglumis
* Agrostis inconspicua
* Agrostis infirma
* Agrostis innominata
* Agrostis insularis
* Agrostis isopholis
* Agrostis jahnii
* Agrostis joyceae
* Agrostis juressii
* Agrostis keniensis
* Agrostis kilimandscharica
* Agrostis koelerioides
* Agrostis kolymensis
* Agrostis korczaginii
* Agrostis lacuna-vernalis
* Agrostis laxissima
* Agrostis lazica
* Agrostis lehmannii
* Agrostis lenis
* Agrostis leptotricha
* Agrostis liebmannii
* Agrostis longiberbis
* Agrostis mackliniae
* Agrostis magellanica
* Agrostis mannii
* Agrostis marojejyensis
* Agrostis masafuerana
* Agrostis media
* Agrostis mertensii (Arctic bent)
* Agrostis merxmuelleri
* Agrostis meyenii
* Agrostis micrantha
* Agrostis microphylla
* Agrostis montevidensis
* Agrostis muelleriana
* Agrostis munroana
* Agrostis × murbeckii
* Agrostis muscosa
* Agrostis musjidii
* Agrostis nebulosa
* Agrostis nervosa
* Agrostis nevadensis
* Agrostis nevskii
* Agrostis nipponensis
* Agrostis novogaliciana
* Agrostis × novograblenovii
* Agrostis olympica
* Agrostis oregonensis
* Agrostis oresbia
* Agrostis pallens (dune bent, seashore bent)
* Agrostis pallescens
* Agrostis × paramushirensis
* Agrostis parviflora
* Agrostis paulsenii
* Agrostis peninsularis
* Agrostis perennans (upland bent)
* Agrostis personata
* Agrostis peschkovae
* Agrostis petriei
* Agrostis philippiana
* Agrostis pilgeriana
* Agrostis pilosula
* Agrostis pittieri
* Agrostis platensis
* Agrostis pleiophylla
* Agrostis pourretii
* Agrostis producta
* Agrostis propinqua
* Agrostis quinqueseta
* Agrostis reuteri
* Agrostis rosei
* Agrostis rossiae
* Agrostis rupestris
* Agrostis salaziensis
* Agrostis salsa
* Agrostis sandwicensis
* Agrostis × sanionis
* Agrostis scabra (rough bent, tickle bent)
* Agrostis scabrifolia
* Agrostis schaffneri
* Agrostis schleicheri
* Agrostis schmidii
* Agrostis sclerophylla
* Agrostis serranoi
* Agrostis sesquiflora
* Agrostis sichotensis
* Agrostis sikkimensis
* Agrostis sinocontracta
* Agrostis sinorupestris
* Agrostis × stebleri
* Agrostis stolonifera (creeping bent)
* Agrostis × subclavata
* Agrostis subpatens
* Agrostis subrepens
* Agrostis subulata
* Agrostis subulifolia
* Agrostis tandilensis (Kennedy's bent)
* Agrostis tateyamensis
* Agrostis taylorii
* Agrostis tenerrima
* Agrostis thompsoniae
* Agrostis thurberiana
* Agrostis tibestica
* Agrostis tileni
* Agrostis tolucensis
* Agrostis × torgesii
* Agrostis trachychlaena
* Agrostis trachyphylla
* Agrostis trichodes
* Agrostis trisetoides
* Agrostis tsaratananensis
* Agrostis tsiafajavonensis
* Agrostis tsitondroinensis
* Agrostis turrialbae
* Agrostis tuvinica
* Agrostis uhligii
* Agrostis uliginosa
* Agrostis umbellata
* Agrostis ushae
* Agrostis × ussuriensis
* Agrostis variabilis (mountain bent)
* Agrostis venezuelana
* Agrostis venusta
* Agrostis vidalii
* Agrostis vinealis (brown bent)
* Agrostis virescens
* Agrostis volkensii
* Agrostis wacei
* Agrostis zenkeri

Hundreds of species formerly listed in the genus Agrostis have been moved to other genera, including Achnatherum, Aira, Alloteropsis, Apera, Arundinella, Calamagrostis, Chaetopogon, Chionochloa, Chloris, Cinna, Colpodium, Crypsis, Cynodon, Deschampsia, Dichelachne, Digitaria, Eremochloa, Eriochloa, Eustachys, Gastridium, Graphephorum, Gymnopogon, Lachnagrostis, Leptochloa, Muhlenbergia, Pentameris, Phippsia, Piptatherum, Poa, Polypogon, Puccinellia, Reimarochloa, Relchela, Schismus, Sporobolus and Zingeria.

## Uses

Some species of bents are commonly used for lawn grass. This is a desirable grass for golf course teeing areas, fairways, and greens.

Bentgrass is used in turf applications for its numerous advantages: it can be mowed to a very short length without damage, it can handle a great amount of foot traffic, it has a shallow root system that is thick and dense allowing it to be seeded and grow rather easily, and it has a pleasing, deep green appearance. The name "bent" refers to the shallow roots, which bend just below the surface of the soil to propagate laterally.

### Creeping bent

Agrostis stolonifera is the most commonly used species of Agrostis. Historically, it was often called Orcheston long grass, after a village on Salisbury Plain, England. It is cultivated almost exclusively on golf courses, especially on putting greens. Creeping bent aggressively produces horizontal stems, called stolons, that run along the soil's surface. These allow creeping bent to form dense stands under conducive conditions and outcompete bunch-type grass and broadleaf weeds. As such, if infested in a home lawn, it can become a troublesome weed problem. The leaves of the bentgrass are long and slender. It can quickly take over a home lawn if it is not controlled and has very shallow roots.

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company and Monsanto genetically engineered creeping bent to be glyphosate-tolerant under Monsanto's Roundup Ready trademark, as "one of the first wind-pollinated, perennial, and highly outcrossing transgenic crops". In 2003, Scotts planted it as part of a large (about 160 ha) field trial in central Oregon near Madras. In 2004, its pollen was found to have reached wild growing bentgrass populations up to 14 kilometres away. Cross-pollinating Agrostis gigantea was even found at a distance of 21 kilometres. Scotts could not remove all genetically engineered plants and in 2007, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service fined them $500,000 for non-compliance with Plant Protection Act regulations.

### Common bent

Agrostis capillaris, or colonial bent, was brought to America from Europe. This was the type of grass that was used on the lawns of most estates. It is the tallest of the bents with very fine texture and like most bent grasses grows very densely. Although this species has been used on golf courses and sporting fields it is better suited for lawns. Colonial bent is fairly easy to grow from seeds and fertilization of the lawn is not as intense. This grass also takes longer to establish than creeping bent. However it does not require the intense maintenance.

### Velvet bent

Agrostis canina gets its name for the velvet appearance that this grass produces. It has the finest texture of all the bent grasses. This grass was used in Europe for estate lawns and golf courses because it could be cut so short. Velvet bent grass requires similar upkeep and maintenance to creeping bent. Velvet bent has recently had a resurgence in the UK due to the high demands on greens from inclement weather and speed expectations. This species also has a lighter color than the two previous species.

## Butterfly food plant

Butterflies whose caterpillars feed on Agrostis include:

* Zabulon skipper, Poanes zabulon
