Bearded Wheatgrass

Elymus caninus, the bearded couch or bearded wheatgrass, is a species of flowering plant in the family Poaceae that is native to Europe including the UK[1] but can be found introduced in the US states of Oregon and Washington.[2] E. caninus has been observed in two morphotypes; the first population being "pauciflorum," with the second being "caninus."[3]

bearded wheatgrass

Found in the forest regions throughout Europe and stretching as far as west Asia, Elymus caninus is a type of self-pollinating wheatgrass. It is described as green, lax-leafed, and caespitose.[4] The widespread distribution of E. caninus has led to sizable differences in morphology, isozyme, prolamine, and DNA levels.[5] Morphological differences seen throughout E. caninus populations include: the number of florets per spikelet, the length of lemma awn, and the pubescence of leaves and their sheaths.[6] Populations from China, Italy, Pakistan, and Russia were determined to have the lowest levels of intra-population variation among E. caninus morphologies. These lower levels may be due to selection factors, population bottlenecks, genetic drift, or a combination of the bunch.[7]

Wheatgrass is said to have many health benefits for people, too. A common way to consume it is to press and juice it and then drink the juice, since the leaves can be hard on the digestive system. Bearded dragons, however, can eat fresh blades of wheatgrass.

(For further information on spectrsocopy, see: )TITLE: Grass-Fescue-Wheatg YNP-FW-2 DESCRIPTDOCUMENTATION_FORMAT: PlantSAMPLE_ID: YNP-FW-2PLANT_TYPE: GrassPLANT: Idaho fescue and bearded wheatgrass.LATIN_NAME: Festuca idahoensis and Agropyron caninum.COLLECTION_LOCALITY: Specimen ridge area (south side of the Lamar Valley) Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA.ORIGINAL_DONOR:SAMPLE_DESCRIPTION:Averaged spectral reflectance for a grassland area,dominated by Idaho fescue and bearded wheatgrass, located on Specimen ridge(south side of the Lamar Valley) of Yellowstone National Park. This area wasdescribed by Despain (1990) as the dry phase of the Idaho fescue/beardedwheatgrass habitat. This average spectrum was computed from 56 pixels ofradiative-transfer-ground-calibrated AVIRIS data. AVIRIS data were collected on August 6, 1996, atapproximately 11:10 am Local Time. AVIRIS channels 1-4, 32-33, 43, 59-62, 81-84, 95-97, 106-113, 154-167,173-175, and 222-224 were deleted due to residual atmospheric effects, poorinstrument response, and redundancy where detectors overlap. Sample referencedin Kokaly et al. (2002).Despain, D.G. (1990), Yellowstone vegetation: Consequences of environmentand history in a natural setting. Santa Barbara: Roberts Rinehart Publishers.Kokaly et al. (2002), "Remote Sensing of environment 5792 (2002)1-20"END_SAMPLE_DESCRIPTION.COMPOSITIONAL_ANALYSIS_TYPE: noneCOMPOSITION_DISCUSSION:END_COMPOSITION_DISCUSSION.TRACE_ELEMENT_ANALYSIS:TRACE_ELEMENT_DISCUSSION:END_TRACE_ELEMENT_DISCUSSION.SPECTROSCOPIC_DISCUSSION:END_SPECTROSCOPIC_DISCUSSION.SPECTRAL_PURITY: 1b2_3_4_ # 1= 0.2-3, 2= 1.5-6, 3= 6-25, 4= 20-150 micronsLIB_SPECTRA_HED: where Wave Range Av_Rs_Pwr CommentLIB_SPECTRA: splib05a r 11140 0.3-2.5µm 200 AccessibilityFOIAPrivacyPolicies and Notices U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey URL: -03-395/DESCRIPT/V/grass-fescue-wheatg_ynp-fw-2.htmlQuestions or Assistance: USGS Web ContactPage Last Modified: Sat Jan 12 23:37 EDT 2013

Leaves: The leaf sheaths are closed almost their full length and feel rough because they are covered in tiny, stiff hairs. The ligules are 3-4 mm long, membrane-like, open in the front and have ragged edges. In addition, there are no auricles and the callus is not bearded. The rough, flat leaves are somewhat inrolled and 2-4 mm wide.

Bluebunch wheatgrass is a perennial native grass that attains a height of between 1 and 2.5 feet (31-76 cm.). Agropyron spicatum grows well in a variety of habits but is most commonly found in well-drained, medium to coarse soil. It has a deep, fibrous root structure that makes it well adapted to drought conditions. In fact, bluebunch wheatgrass will flourish with only an annual rainfall of between 12 and 14 inches (31-36 cm.). Leaves remain green throughout the growing season with sufficient moisture and the nutritional value to grazing cattle and horses is good until the fall.

There are bearded and beardless subspecies. This means some varieties have awns, while others do not. The seeds alternate within the seed head looking much akin to wheat. The grass blades of growing bluebunch wheatgrass may be either flat or loosely rolled and are around 1/16th of an inch (2 mm.) across.

Bluebunch wheatgrass usually spreads via seed dispersal but in areas of high rainfall, it may be spread by short rhizomes. Usually, ranchers periodically regenerate the grass by tilling seeds to a depth of to inch (6 mm. to 1 cm.) or doubling the number of seeds and broadcasting them over areas that are inhospitable. Seeding is done in the spring on heavy to medium textured soil and in the late fall for medium to light soils. 041b061a72