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Common Name: Italian Ryegrass

Other Names: Annual Ryegrass, Marshall Ryegrass

Species Name: Lolium perenne L. ssp multiflorum

Plant Type: Grasses & Grass-like

Family Name: Poaceae

 

 

 

 

Plant Facts  
Origin Introduced, Europe
Duration Annual
Season Cool
Distribution in the U.S. Introduced to every state in the U.S.
Distribution in Oklahoma Beckham, Bryan, Choctaw, Cleveland, Custer, Grady, Marshall, Murray, Payne and Pontotoc counties

 

 

ID Characteristics

  • Field Identification Characteristics
    • Inflorescence: A spike up to 30 centimeters in length; anthers three; yellow or purple
    • Spikelets: Spikes are terminal and flat with spikelets that are placed edgewise and alternate along the flowering stem; the spikes are often as long as 12 inches
  • Leaf and Stem Characteristics
    • Sheath: Smooth clasping auricles
    • Stem: Often purplish at the base, from 1 to 2.5 feet tall
    • Blade: Flat, smooth, shiny blades 1/8 to 1/4 inches wide, dark green with prominent veins; leaf blade is rolled in the bud
    • Ligule: Membranous, can grow to 1/10 inch in length
    • Auricle: Small and narrow, can be up to 1/12 of an inch long

 

 

Habitat/Ecology  
Soil Type Varying
Habitat Roadsides, waste areas, cultivated crop fields, lawns and pasture; normally restricted to lowland habitats
Successional Stage Early

 

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