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Perennial Rye-grass photos | Family Name: Grass (Poaceae syn. Gramineae) |
Scientific Name: | Lolium perenne | Flower spikes of Perennial Rye-grass Photo: A J Brown | ||||||||
Status: | Native of temperate Europe, northern Africa and Asia. Naturalised throughout Australia | |||||||||
Plant Description: | Tufted perennial grass to 90 cm tall with flat, hairless, smooth, often shiny, leaf blades to 30 cm long and 6 mm wide. Flower-heads are spikes to 30 cm long, each spikelet having only one glume subtending up to 14 florets (commonly 7-8) and attached edge-on to the flower stalk (rachis). | |||||||||
Habitat: | Common grass across the wetter parts of Victoria but also scattered in the Mallee and Wimmera if conditions are wet enough. Often persistent on heavier soils and has reasonably good waterlogging tolerance. Indicative of fresh-water environments, whereas Wimmera Rye-grass (Lolium rigidum) may be found on slightly saline sites.
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Comments: | A purposely sown species with many cultivars developed for grazed pastures and hay crops. Hybridization with other Rye-grass species occurs and often makes clear identification difficult. From Wimmera Rye-grass (Lolium rigidum) it differs in having glumes only ½ to ¾ as long as the spikelet compared to glumes longer than ¾ in the former. The young emerging leaves of Perennial Rye-grass are flat or folded compared to the rolled leaves of Wimmera Rye-grass. From Tall Wheat-grass (Lophopyrum ponticum) it differs (among other things) in the orientation of its spikelets to the rachis. |
Perennial Rye-grass leaf blade and stem junction Photo: A J Brown | Opening spikelets of Perennial Rye-grass showing anthers Photo: A J Brown |
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