Quaking Grass (Briza media): A Delicate Grass with Trembling Heart-Shaped Seed Heads

Quaking Grass, also called Rattlesnake Grass, is a charming perennial grass (Briza media) native to Europe and Asia. Its delicate, heart-shaped spikelets dangle on slender stems and tremble in the slightest breeze, creating a constant, mesmerizing motion.

Ornamental Seed Heads

This grass forms a small, compact tuft of gray-green leaves 12–18 inches tall. In late spring to early summer, wiry stems rise to 2 feet, bearing loose panicles of numerous, flattened, heart-shaped spikelets that are greenish-purple, maturing to straw. The spikelets are paper-thin and quiver independently.

Garden Use

Quaking Grass prefers full sun to part shade and well-drained, even poor soil. It is drought-tolerant once established. It self-sows gently. The dried stems are excellent in flower arrangements. A delightful addition to meadow gardens, rockeries, and cottage borders.