genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...
s belonging to the grass
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Pooideae
The Pooideae are the largest subfamily of the grass family Poaceae, with about 4,000 species in 15 tribes and roughly 200 genera. They include some major cereals such as wheat, barley, oat, rye and many lawn and pasture grasses. They are often ...
). They are
evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...
or
herbaceous
Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials.
Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous"
The fourth edition ...
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on every continent except
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...
. The genus is closely related to
ryegrass
''Lolium'' is a genus of tufted grasses in the bluegrass subfamily (Pooideae). It is often called ryegrass, but this term is sometimes used to refer to grasses in other genera.
They are characterized by bunch-like growth habits. ''Lolium'' i ...
(''Lolium''), and recent evidence from
phylogenetic
In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...
monophyly
In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gr ...
. As a result, plant
taxonomist
In biology, taxonomy () is the scientific study of naming, defining ( circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxa (singular: taxon) and these groups are given ...
s have moved several species, including the forage grasses tall fescue and meadow fescue, from the genus ''Festuca'' into the genus ''Lolium'', or alternatively into the segregate genus ''
Schedonorus
''Lolium'' is a genus of tufted grasses in the bluegrass subfamily (Pooideae). It is often called ryegrass, but this term is sometimes used to refer to grasses in other genera.
They are characterized by bunch-like growth habits. ''Lolium'' is ...
''.
Because the
taxonomy
Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.
A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...
is complex, scientists have not determined how many true species belong to the genus, but estimates range from more than 400 to over 640.Darbyshire, S. J. and L. E. Pavlick ''Festuca''. Grass Manual. Flora of North America.
Fescue
pollen
Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametop ...
is a significant contributor to
hay fever
Allergic rhinitis, of which the seasonal type is called hay fever, is a type of inflammation in the nose that occurs when the immune system overreacts to allergens in the air. Signs and symptoms include a runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, red ...
.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Festuca'' represents a major evolutionary line of the tribe
Poeae
The Poeae are the largest tribe of the grasses, with around 2,500 species in 121 genera. The tribe includes many lawn and pasture grasses.
Taxonomy
Two separate tribes, Poeae and Aveneae, used to be distinguished based on morphology, but phylog ...
. The ancient group has produced various segregates that possess more advanced characteristics than ''Festuca'', including
racemose
A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the sh ...
inflorescences and more annual habits.
The word "''
festuca
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on e ...
''" is a
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
word meaning "stem" or "stalk" first used by
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ...
to describe a weed. The word ''Festuca'' first appears to describe grasses in
Dodoens
Rembert Dodoens (born Rembert Van Joenckema, 29 June 1517 – 10 March 1585) was a Flemish physician and botanist, also known under his Latinized name Rembertus Dodonaeus. He has been called the father of botany.
Life
Dodoens was born Rembe ...
' "Stirpium historiae pemptades sex, sive libri XXX" in 1583. However, the plant Dodoens described as ''Festuca altera'' is truly ''
Bromus secalinus
''Bromus secalinus'' is a species of bromegrass known as rye brome. The specific epithet ''secalinus'' is Latin, meaning "rye-like". The fruits are hard, rounded glumes that appear superficially similar to the rye grain, which gives the brome it ...
''. Other authors before
Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, t ...
used the name to describe other various species of ''
Bromus
''Bromus'' is a large genus of grasses, classified in its own tribe Bromeae. They are commonly known as bromes, brome grasses, cheat grasses or chess grasses. Estimates in the scientific literature of the number of species have ranged from 10 ...
''. In the first edition of "Genera Plantarum", Linnaeus describes seven species of ''Festuca'', five of which are truly ''Bromus'' grasses with the other two being ''
Festuca gigantea
''Festuca gigantea'', or giant fescue, is a plant species in the grass family, Poaceae. Because this and other members of ''Festuca'' subgenus ''Schedonorus'' have more in common morphologically with members of the genus ''Lolium
''Lolium'' ...
'' and ''
Festuca pratensis
''Festuca pratensis'', the meadow fescue, is a perennial species of grass, which is often used as an ornamental grass in gardens, and is also an important forage crop.
It grows in meadows, roadsides, old pastures, and riversides on moist, rich ...
''. In 1753 the genus is accepted as first being formally described, in Linnaeus' "Species Plantarum". Eleven species were described, with '' F. ovina'' being the type species. Of these eleven, one species was ''
Danthonia
''Danthonia'' is a genus of Eurasian, North African, and American plants in the grass family. Members of this genus are sometimes referred to as oatgrass, but that common name is not restricted to this genus. Other common names include heathgr ...
'', one ''
Poa
''Poa'' is a genus of about 570 species of grasses, native to the temperate regions of both hemispheres. Common names include meadow-grass (mainly in Europe and Asia), bluegrass (mainly in North America), tussock (some New Zealand species), a ...
'', and one ''
Koeleria
''Koeleria'' is a common and widespread genus of plants in the grass family, found on all continents except Antarctica and on various oceanic islands. It includes species known generally as Junegrasses.
The genus was named after German botanist ...
''. The first major monograph on the genus was Hackel's "Monographia Festucarum Europaearum" in 1882. Since Linnaeus' publications, seven genera have been proposed for groups of perennial fescues and fifteen for annual fescues, all with varying degrees of acceptance. For example, in 1906 the subgenus ''
Vulpia
''Vulpia'' is a widespread genus of plants in the grass family, native to many countries around the world and naturalized in many of the nations to which it is not native. It is most common in temperate regions.
''Vulpia'' is a part of a group o ...
'' was introduced for North American species. The annual habit and shorter anthers of ''Vulpia'' has since been enough to distinguish ''Vulpia'' as a separate genus from ''Festuca''.
The taxonomy of the genus is ultimately problematic and controversial, as evidenced by the large number of small genera closely related to ''Festuca''. Often distinguishing species within the genus requires the analysis of highly specific morphological differences on characters such as ovary pubescence or leaf
sclerenchyma
The ground tissue of plants includes all tissues that are neither dermal nor vascular. It can be divided into three types based on the nature of the cell walls.
# Parenchyma cells have thin primary walls and usually remain alive after they becom ...
patterns. This distribution of sclerenchyma tissue is an important distinguishing character between species, and though species can be locally distinguished without analyzing these characteristics, to distinguish the genus as a whole the analysis is necessary.
Description
''Festuca'' grasses are perennial and
bisexual
Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, wh ...
plants that are densely to loosely
cespitose
This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...
. Some grasses are
rhizomatous
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow h ...
, some lack rhizomes, and rarely species are
stolon
In biology, stolons (from Latin '' stolō'', genitive ''stolōnis'' – "branch"), also known as runners, are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external ...
iferous. The
culm
Culm or The Culm may refer to:
* Culm (anthracite), meaning of "culm" in British English, a kind of coal found in the Culm Measures, and a term used for fine-grained waste from anthracite coal
**Culm bomb or culm ball
* Culm (botany), the stem of ...
s of the grasses are typically glabrous and smooth, though some species have scabrous culms or culms that are pubescent below the
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed ...
s. The
leaf sheath
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...
s range from open to the base to closed to the top. Some species have sheaths that persist over years and typically have deciduous blades, and some species have sheaths that quickly shred into fibers and decay in
senescence
Senescence () or biological aging is the gradual deterioration of functional characteristics in living organisms. The word ''senescence'' can refer to either cellular senescence or to senescence of the whole organism. Organismal senescence inv ...
and typically have blades that are not deciduous. Species lack auricles. The
membranous
A membrane is a selective barrier; it allows some things to pass through but stops others. Such things may be molecules, ions, or other small particles. Membranes can be generally classified into synthetic membranes and biological membranes. ...
ligule A ligule (from "strap", variant of ''lingula'', from ''lingua'' "tongue") is a thin outgrowth at the junction of leaf and leafstalk of many Poaceae, grasses (Poaceae) and Cyperaceae, sedges. A ligule is also a strap-shaped extension of the corolla ...
s measure and are typically longest at the margins. The ligules are typically
truncate
In mathematics and computer science, truncation is limiting the number of digits right of the decimal point.
Truncation and floor function
Truncation of positive real numbers can be done using the floor function. Given a number x \in \mathbb ...
and
ciliate
The ciliates are a group of alveolates characterized by the presence of hair-like organelles called cilia, which are identical in structure to eukaryotic flagella, but are in general shorter and present in much larger numbers, with a differen ...
, though they can occasionally be
acute
Acute may refer to:
Science and technology
* Acute angle
** Acute triangle
** Acute, a leaf shape in the glossary of leaf morphology
* Acute (medicine), a disease that it is of short duration and of recent onset.
** Acute toxicity, the adverse eff ...
or
erose
This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...
. The flat and
conduplicate
The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...
leaf blades are
involute
In mathematics, an involute (also known as an evolvent) is a particular type of curve that is dependent on another shape or curve. An involute of a curve is the locus of a point on a piece of taut string as the string is either unwrapped from o ...
or
convolute
Convolute may refer to:
* Convolute (botany)
* Convolute (manuscript), a volume containing several manuscripts
* Convolute (segment), along with gores, material segments used in pressure suit joints to allow for increased mobility
* Convolute l ...
and are sometimes
glaucous
''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), g ...
or
pruinose Pruinescence , or pruinosity, is a "frosted" or dusty-looking coating on top of a surface. It may also be called a pruina (plural: ''pruinae''), from the Latin word for hoarfrost. The adjectival form is pruinose .
Entomology
In insects, a "blo ...
Festuca perennis
''Lolium perenne'', common name perennial ryegrass, English ryegrass, winter ryegrass, or ray grass, 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. ...
''– (historical) perennial and Italian ryegrass
*''
Festuca petraea
''Festuca petraea'' is a species of grass endemic to the Azores, Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal:
:* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsul ...
'' – Azorean fescue
*''
Festuca picturata
''Festuca picturata'' is a species of Poaceae, grass which can be found in Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and southeastern Europe.
Description
The plant is perennial plant, perennial and caespitose with long culm (botany), cul ...
''
*''
Festuca pilgeri
''Festuca pilgeri'' is a species of grass which is endemic to East Africa.
Description
The plant is perennial and caespitose with long culms that are clumped. The ligule is going around the eciliate membrane while the leaf-sheaths are smooth ...
''
*''
Festuca polycolea
''Festuca polycolea'' is a species of grass which is endemic to India.
Description
The plant is perennial and caespitose with long culms that are erect. The ligule is long and is going around the eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades are filiform, c ...
''
*''
Festuca porcii
''Festuca porcii'' is a species of grass which can be found in Central, Eastern, and southeastern parts of Europe.
Description
The plant is perennial and caespitose with culms. The ligule is going around the eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades are ...
''
*''
Festuca pratensis
''Festuca pratensis'', the meadow fescue, is a perennial species of grass, which is often used as an ornamental grass in gardens, and is also an important forage crop.
It grows in meadows, roadsides, old pastures, and riversides on moist, rich ...
'' – meadow fescue, English bluegrass
*''
Festuca procera
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca psammophila
''Festuca psammophila'' is a species of grass which is endemic to Central Europe.
Description
The plant is perennial and caespitose with long culms and smooth internodes. The ligule is going around the eciliate membrane. Leaf sheaths have an e ...
''
*''
Festuca pseudodalmatica
''Festuca pseudodalmatica'' is a species of grass which can be found in Central, Eastern and southeastern Europe.
Description
The plant is perennial and caespitose with long culms. The ligule is going around the eciliate membrane. Leaf sheaths ...
Festuca pseudoeskia
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family (biology), family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous plant, herbaceous perennial plant, perennial tufted grasses with a height range of ...
''
*''
Festuca pseudovina
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
'' – pseudovina
*''
Festuca pulchella
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family (biology), family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous plant, herbaceous perennial plant, perennial tufted grasses with a height range of ...
''
*''
Festuca punctoria
''Festuca punctoria'' is a species of grass in the family Poaceae. It is native to northwestern Turkey. It is perennial and grows in temperate biomes. It was described in 1806.
References
punctoria
Endemic flora of Turkey
Plants describe ...
''
*''
Festuca purpurascens
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family (biology), family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous plant, herbaceous perennial plant, perennial tufted grasses with a height range of ...
''
*''
Festuca pyrenaica
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca quadriflora
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca riccerii
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca rivularis
''Festuca rivularis'' is a species of grass in the family Poaceae
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos an ...
''
*''
Festuca rubra
''Festuca rubra'' is a species of grass known by the common name red fescue or creeping red fescue. It is widespread across much of the Northern Hemisphere and can tolerate many habitats and climates. It is best adapted to well-drained soils in ...
Festuca rupicola
''Festuca rupicola'', the furrowed fescue, is a species of cool-season grass in the family Poaceae. It is native the warm-temperate Old World; from the Atlas Mountains of Africa, then France and much of central and eastern Europe through to Cen ...
'' – furrowed fescue
*''
Festuca saximontana
''Festuca saximontana'', the rocky mountain fescue or the mountain fescue, is a perennial grass native to North America. The specific epithet ''saximontana'' is Latin and means "of the Rocky Mountains". The grass has a diploid number of 42.
Taxo ...
'' – Rocky Mountain fescue
*''
Festuca scabra
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca sclerophylla
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca sinensis
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca sodiroana
''Festuca sodiroana'' is a species of grass in the family Poaceae. Its habitat spans from southern Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar language, Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republ ...
''
*''
Festuca sororia
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on ever ...
'' – ravine fescue
*''
Festuca spectabilis
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca stricta
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca subulata
''Festuca subulata'' is a species of grass known by the common names bearded fescue and nodding fescue. It is native to the northwestern quarter of North America, from Alaska to South Dakota to northern California, where it is most often found in ...
'' – bearded fescue
*''
Festuca subuliflora
''Festuca subuliflora'' is a species of grass known by the common name crinkleawn fescue. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California where it is most abundant in the moist forests of the coastal mountains.
Desc ...
Festuca subverticillata
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
'' – nodding fescue
*''
Festuca tatrae
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca thurberi
''Festuca thurberi'' is a species of grass known by the common name Thurber's fescue. It is native to a section of the western United States encompassing New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming. It probably also occurs in parts of Arizona.M ...
'' – Thurber's fescue
*''
Festuca trachyphylla
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca vaginalis
''Festuca vaginalis'' is a species of grass. It is found only in Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar language, Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del ...
''
*''
Festuca vaginata
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca valesiaca
''Festuca valesiaca'', the Volga fescue, is a species of flowering plant in the family Poaceae. It is native to Europe and Asia. It was introduced to North America when it was deliberately planted.Darbyshire, S. J. and L. E. Pavlick. (2007)''Fe ...
'' – Volga fescue
*''
Festuca varia
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family (biology), family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous plant, herbaceous perennial plant, perennial tufted grasses with a height range of ...
''
*''
Festuca venusta
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
''
*''
Festuca versuta
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca vivipara
''Festuca vivipara'', the viviparous sheep's-fescue, is a species of grass native to northern Europe, northern Asia, and subarctic North America. The specific epithet ''vivipara'' is Latin, referring to the florets' alteration to leafy tufts. Th ...
Festuca washingtonica
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca xanthina
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on eve ...
Festuca arundinacea
''Festuca arundinacea'' (syn., ''Schedonorus arundinaceus'' and ''Lolium arundinaceum'') is a species of grass commonly known as tall fescue. It is a cool-season perennial C3 species of bunchgrass native to Europe. It is an important forage gra ...
'' (
syn.
The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently.
* In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...
Festuca gigantea
''Festuca gigantea'', or giant fescue, is a plant species in the grass family, Poaceae. Because this and other members of ''Festuca'' subgenus ''Schedonorus'' have more in common morphologically with members of the genus ''Lolium
''Lolium'' ...
Festuca pratensis
''Festuca pratensis'', the meadow fescue, is a perennial species of grass, which is often used as an ornamental grass in gardens, and is also an important forage crop.
It grows in meadows, roadsides, old pastures, and riversides on moist, rich ...