Smooth Cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora)
Visit a salt marsh anywhere in Massachusetts and what you’ll see is an assemblage of grass species, largely indistinguishable from each other to the casual passerby. Although difficult to tell apart from a distance, and sometimes difficult even up close when their flowers or seeds are not present, salt marshes are generally comprised of a variety of species. One of the most common, however, is smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). S. alterniflora grows 2 to 6 feet high and is typically…