Lolium perenne, common name perennial rye-grass or English ryegrass or winter
ryegrass, is a grass from the family Poaceae. It is native to Europe, Asia
and northern Africa, but is widely cultivated and naturalised around the
world. Description
The plant is a low-growing, tufted, hairless grass, with a bunching growth
habit. The leaves are dark green, smooth and glossy on the lower surface, with
untoothed parallel sides and prominent parallel veins on the upper surface. The
leaves are folded lengthwise in bud with a strong central keel, giving a
flattened appearance. The ligule is very short and truncate, often difficult to
see, and small white auricles grip the stem at the base of the leaf blade. Leaf
sheaths at the base are usually tinged pink and hairless. Stems grow up to 90
cm. It has auricles. The inflorescence is unbranched, with
spikelets on alternating sides edgeways-on to the stem. Each spikelet
has only a single glume, on the side away from the stem, and between 4 and 14
Florets without awns, unlike Italian ryegrass. The anthers are pale yellow,
and the plant flowers from May to November. Perennial ryegrass has a
fibrous root system, with thick main roots and thinner lateral branches.
Roots are usually arbuscular mycorrhizal.
Cultivation and uses Perennial ryegrass is an important
pasture and forage plant, and is used in many pasture seed mixes. In fertile soil
it produces a high grass yield, and in Britain and Ireland is frequently sown
for short-term ley grassland, often with red or white clover.
In Britain, it is also used as an indicator of non-species rich grassland,
as it out-competes the more rare plants and grasses, especially in fertile
soils. Agri-environment scheme such as the Countryside Stewardship Scheme,
Environmentally Sensitive Areas Scheme, and Environmental Stewardship give
funding to species rich grasslands that do not have an abundance of ryegrass.
Selected seed mixes are used extensively for sports pitches, especially winter
sports in temperate climates, because of its wear resistance and its ability to
regenerate. It is commonly used in the southwest
United States to overseed winter lawns. Bermudagrass is a typical summertime
grass in states like Arizona, since it is able to withstand the high
temperatures. However, Bermudagrass goes dormant during the cooler winter months.
Rather than have brown lawns, many homeowners, public areas, and golf
courses overseed these lawns with Perennial Ryegrass in early- to mid-
September. Turf-type perennial ryegrass can be
grown as a permanent home lawn in the US and typically found as part of a mix
with fine fescue and Kentucky bluegrass. However, its adaptation range is limited
to areas with moderate winters and mild summers. Full sun to light shade, good
yearly rainfall, and proper fertilization are the key to a
successful perennial ryegrass lawn. Perennial ryegrass forms a very dense,
dark green, fine bladed turf with the proper maintenance, and it can be
successfully grown as a permanent lawn in the Pacific Northwest and coastal
areas in California. In the East, from North Carolina to Southern New England.
Yearly overseeding might be needed to replace damaged grass caused by
excessive heat during the summer. Maximum daytime temperature should not
regularly reach 90 °F. Night time temperatures should hover around 14–17
°C. Avoid planting in arid areas if irrigation is not available, or places
where extreme temperatures are the norm. Similar species
Italian ryegrass, Lolium multiflorum, differs in the fact that each scale in
the spikelet has a long bristle at the top. Its stem is also round rather than
folded. Couch, Elymus repens, has spikelets set
on the broadside of the stem rather than edge on.
Gallery References
^ "BSBI List 2007". Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the
original on 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
^ BSBI Description retrieved 10 December 2010.
^ Readers Digest Nature Lovers Library Field Guide To Wild Flowers Of Britain,
1998, page 416 External links
Jepson Manual Treatment USDA Plants Profile
Forest Service Fire Ecology Photo gallery