marram grass

American  

[mar-uhm] / ˈmær əm /

noun

1. a grass, Ammophila arenaria, having matted, creeping rhizomes, grown on sandy shores of Europe, North America, and Australia to bind the sand.

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marram grass British  

/ ˈmærəm /

noun

1. any of several grasses of the genus Ammophila , esp A. arenaria, that grow on sandy shores and can withstand drying: often planted to stabilize sand dunes

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Etymology

Origin of marram grass

First recorded in 1630–40; originally dialect (East Anglian); from Old Norse marálmr, equivalent to marr “sea” + hálmr “grass”; mere ², haulm

Example Sentences

Only decades ago many of the cottages in Scotland’s Highlands were roofed in heather, bracken and marram grass.

From The Wall Street Journal

They hope the project will help sand and marram grass build up again around the trees.

From BBC

The Pampas grass helps to bond poor soils found at the coast, while Marram grass helps to prevent erosion in the dunes.

From BBC

County Down’s dunes are mostly covered in dense marram grass and dotted with blooming gorse; Tara Iti has far more exposed sand.

From Golf Digest

The course’s tough but clear lines amid the occasional vistas that can stretch all the way to the island of Islay 25 miles away are accentuated by ribboned fairways framed by dunes and hearty rough or even meatier marram grass, just as it was when Max Faulkner won in 1951 wearing plus fours and using a putter made of driftwood.

From Golf Digest