Elymus glaucus
Elymus glaucus is a species of grass known as blue wild rye or blue wildrye. This grass is native to North America from Alaska to New York to northern Mexico. It is a common and widespread species of wild rye.[1][2]
| Elymus glaucus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Spikelets of blue wild rye | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Pooideae |
| Genus: | Elymus |
| Species: | E. glaucus |
| Binomial name | |
| Elymus glaucus | |
Description
A perennial bunch grass, it grows small, narrow tufts of several erect stems which grow 0.5–1.5 m (1 ft 8 in – 4 ft 11 in) tall. It has a thick, fibrous root system, sometimes with rhizomes, the stems may form stolons. It has flat leaves each up to a centimeter wide at the base and rapidly narrowing to a point.[3]
The tip of the stem is occupied by a narrow, pointed inflorescence many centimeters long made up of a few spikelets. Each spikelet is one to one and a half centimeters long, not counting an awn which may be two or three centimeters in length. Common native grass associates in the far west coastal prairies are Danthonia californica, Deschampsia caespitosa, Festuca idahoensis and Nassella pulchra.[4]
Ecology
It is a larval host to the woodland skipper (Ochlodes sylvanoides).[5]
References
- Kathleen A. Johnson. 1999. Elymus glaucus
- Calflora Database: Elymus glaucus (blue wildrye)
- Jepson Manual. 1993. Jepson Manual Treatment: Elymus glaucus
- C. Michael Hogan. 2009. "Purple Needlegrass (Nassella pulchra)" Globaltwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg
- The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.
External links
- Photo gallery at CalPhotos