''Poa nemoralis'', the wood bluegrass, is a
perennial
In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...
plant in the family
Poaceae
Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivate ...
. The late-growing grass is fairly nutritious for livestock, which feed on it in the autumn, and it is used as a lawn grass for shady situations.
Description
It forms loose tufts, and is of a more delicate, slender appearance than other meadow grasses. It is slightly creeping. The leaves are narrow, tapering to a point. The ligules are short (0.5 mm). The stem is slender, high. The
panicle
In botany, a panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a p ...
is slender, loose and branched. The
spikelet
A spikelet, in botany, describes the typical arrangement of the inflorescences of grasses, sedges and some other monocots.
Each spikelet has one or more florets. The spikelets are further grouped into panicles or spikes. The part of the sp ...
s are few and egg-shaped. They have one to five flowers. This grass is in flower from June to August in the Northern Hemisphere. It can produce asexual seeds by means of
apomixis
In botany, apomixis is asexual development of seed or embryo without fertilization. However, other definitions include replacement of the seed by a plantlet or replacement of the flower by bulbils.
Apomictically produced offspring are geneti ...
and can also reproduce vegetatively.
[
Because of the characteristic ]lamina
Lamina may refer to:
People
* Saa Emerson Lamina, Sierra Leonean politician
* Tamba Lamina, Sierra Leonean politician and diplomat
Science and technology
* Planar lamina, a two-dimensional planar closed surface with mass and density, in mathem ...
, similar to a stretched out arm, it is sometimes called "Wegweisergras" (signpost grass) in Germany.[
]
Distribution and habitat
Wood bluegrass is native to Europe, where its range extends from Portugal to Bulgaria, and Asia where its range extends from Iran to Japan. It has been introduced in Australia and New Zealand, and to North America where it has become naturalised in southeastern Canada and northeastern United States. Shade tolerant, it is often found in forests and grows up to half a metre tall.[Haeupler & Muer 2007: 672] It is generally distributed in Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales
* The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
in dry woods, thickets and shady hedge banks on well drained soils. In its invasive range in America, it sometimes grows in coniferous forests, where its presence is thought to increase the risk of fires, and on floodplains, the banks of rivers and lakes, and disturbed sites.[ In the British Isles, it is found throughout the United Kingdom but at more scattered locations in Ireland, where it may have been introduced.]
Footnotes
References
*
* (2007): Bildatlas der Farn- und Blütenpflanzen Deutschlands. ''Ulmer Verlag'' (in German)
* The Observers Book of Grasses, Sedges and Rushes. Frances Rose. pp. 46–47
* Grasses, Ferns, Mosses and Lichens. (1980) Phillips, Roger p64
External links
''Poa nemoralis''
photo
The Ohio State University: ''Poa nemoralis''
Jepson Manual Treatment
Grass Manual Treatment
{{Taxonbar, from=Q158894
nemoralis
Grasses of Europe
Grasses of Asia
Grasses of North America
Flora of Europe
Flora of temperate Asia
Flora of the Indian subcontinent
Flora of Northern America
Plants described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
Grasses of Lebanon