''Elymus lanceolatus'' is a species of

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

known by the

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...

s thickspike wheatgrassHumphrey DL, Pyke DA (2001) Ramet spacing of ''Elymus lanceolatus'' (thickspike wheatgrass) in response to neighbor density. ''Canadian Journal of Botany'' 79(9): 1122 –1126. and streamside wheatgrass. It is native to North America, where it is widespread and abundant in much of Canada and the western and central United States. There are two subspecies, subsp. ''lanceolatus'' occurring throughout the species' range and subsp. ''psammophilus'' occurring in the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

region.Scher, Janette S. (2002)
''Elymus lanceolatus''.
In: Fire Effects Information System, nline U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. Retrieved 12-20-2011. ''Elymus lanceolatus'' subsp. ''lanceolatus'' 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 ...

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 hori ...

grass. It has a moderate growth rate and is shade intolerant. It is available commercially.

Description

This grass produces hollow, erect stems up to tall. The grass grows from a dense network of roots and

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...

s thickly intertwined to form a

sod Sod is the upper layer of turf that is harvested for transplanting. Turf consists of a variable thickness of a soil medium that supports a community of turfgrasses. In British and Australian English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', ...

. The leaves are up to long and wide and are flat or slightly rolled at the edges. In dry, hot weather the leaves roll completely into cylindrical shapes. The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

is a narrow, compact spike at the top of the stem, measuring up to long. Each spikelet may have 2 to 11 flowers. ''Elymus lanceolatus'' is polymorphic, there are two subspecies: subsp. ''lanceolatus'' occurring throughout the species' range and subsp. ''psammophilus'' occurring in the

region. This species can hybridize with some other grass species, bluebunch wheatgrass ('' Pseudoroegneria spicata'') and slender wheatgrass ('' Elymus trachycaulus'').

Ecology

This plant is native to semiarid regions. The plant grows in areas with 200-500 millimeters (8-20 inches) of annual precipitation. It is common and dominant in a number of

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

types in all stages of

ecological succession Ecological succession is the process of how species compositions change in an Community (ecology), ecological community over time. The two main categories of ecological succession are primary succession and secondary succession. Primary successi ...

. It can be found in forests, woodlands,

sagebrush Sagebrush is the common name of several woody and herbaceous species of plants in the genus ''Artemisia (plant), Artemisia''. The best-known sagebrush is the shrub ''Artemisia tridentata''. Sagebrush is native to the western half of North Amer ...

, shrubsteppe,

desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...

, sandy lakeshores and

sand dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

, and a wide variety of

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...

and

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

s. It takes hold easily in disturbed areas such as roadsides. It is capable of growing in high altitude regions of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

or at sea level near the

in the United States. Though it rarely forms large monotypic stands, small pure stands of the species are common. It is highly

drought A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, ...

-resistant and tolerant of

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...

and

grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to free range (roam around) and consume wild vegetations in order to feed conversion ratio, convert the otherwise indigestible (by human diges ...

pressure. The bloom period for ''E. lanceolatus'' is mid-spring. The plant often reproduces by seed, but in some areas, particularly in sandy substrates, it reproduces vegetatively by sprouting from its rhizome. New plants sprout from a

soil seed bank The soil seed bank is the natural storage of seeds, often dormant, within the soil of most ecosystems. The study of soil seed banks started in 1859 when Charles Darwin observed the emergence of seedlings using soil samples from the bottom of a lak ...

, the seeds surviving in the soil for 3 to 4 years on average. ''E. lanceolatus'' is

mycorrhizal A mycorrhiza (; , mycorrhiza, or mycorrhizas) is a symbiotic association between a fungus and a plant. The term mycorrhiza refers to the role of the fungus in the plant's rhizosphere, the plant root system and its surroundings. Mycorrhizae play ...

.Lenhoff EA, Menalled FD (2013
Impacts of ''Tamarix''-mediated soil changes on restoration plant growth
''Applied Vegetation Science'' 16(3): 438 – 447.

Uses

''Elymus lanceolatus'' shows potential to be used for restoring grasslands. This can indirectly help human food consumption as ''E. lanceolatus'' may improve

soil health Soil health is a state of a soil meeting its range of ecosystem functions as appropriate to its environment. In more colloquial terms, the health of soil arises from favorable interactions of all soil components (living and non-living) that belong ...

.Wilson SD (2015) Managing contingency in semiarid grassland restoration through repeated planning. ''Restoration Ecology'' 23(4): 385 – 392. Soil health may be improved because it produces a sod due to its ability to form grass root networks and rhizomes. The term

refers to grass which is held together by roots below soil. Plants may have a more difficult time forming rhizomes if there are neighboring roots nearby that would cause physical resistance. This plant’s growth is increased by removing other plants nearby and planting at a moderate density around 300-600 seeds/m². Wheatgrass has also previously been shown to be beneficial for forage uses. This may be because it can be seeded with

legume Legumes are plants in the pea family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seeds of such plants. When used as a dry grain for human consumption, the seeds are also called pulses. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consum ...

s in both warm and cool seasons''. Elymus lanceolatus'' has specifically been used for animal foraging. Though ''E. lanceolatus'' does not produce a nut or berry product, it can be consumed by grazing animals. In the spring, it is a preferred food source for elk, horses, and cattle. It is additionally beneficial because it has a rapid vegetative spread rate even though its rate of spreading seeds is slow. Humans have not eaten ''E. lanceolatus'' because studies suggest that it may inedible for human consumption. However, it has a medium protein nutritive potential. Its protein levels are highest in the spring, at around 20%. This protein content decreases to about 4% as the plant matures. The amount of carbohydrates that can be digested (in animals) are about 45% in the growth period of ''E. lanceolatus''. The USDA Plants Profile page suggests that ''E. lanceolatus'' is not palatable to humans. This grass makes a good

forage Forage is a plant material (mainly plant leaves and stems) eaten by grazing livestock. Historically, the term ''forage'' has meant only plants eaten by the animals directly as pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, but it is also used m ...

for livestock, particularly when it is young and succulent. This grass may also be used for foraging in the summer season even though many other grass species are past their optimal nutritive and productive period. Wildlife such as

elk The elk (: ''elk'' or ''elks''; ''Cervus canadensis'') or wapiti, is the second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. ...

also consume it. It is valuable for

revegetation Revegetation is the process of replanting and rebuilding the soil of disturbed land. This may be a natural process produced by plant colonization and succession, manmade rewilding projects, accelerated process designed to repair damage to a la ...

efforts in disturbed spaces such as pipeline construction sites and is good for

rangeland Rangelands are grasslands, shrublands, woodlands, wetlands, and deserts that are grazed by domestic livestock or wild animals. Types of rangelands include tallgrass and shortgrass prairies, desert grasslands and shrublands, woodlands, savanna ...

rehabilitation. It is also used in urban areas. Its ability to form thick sod makes it good for

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as Surface runoff, water flow or wind) that removes soil, Rock (geology), rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust#Crust, Earth's crust and then sediment transport, tran ...

control, and the sod is so dense that many weeds are unable to invade stands of it. A number of

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

s have been introduced, such as 'Bannock,' 'Critana,' 'Elbee,' 'Schwendimar,' 'Secar,' and 'Sodar'. The grass, including its cultivars, has been shown to be effective at inhibiting the spread of weeds such as Russian knapweed (''Acroptilon repens'') and

diffuse knapweed ''Centaurea diffusa'', also known as diffuse knapweed, white knapweed or tumble knapweed, is a member of the genus ''Centaurea'' in the family Asteraceae. This species is common throughout western North America but is not actually native to the ...

(''Centaurea diffusa''). Because the plant produces a dense mat of rhizomes, deep roots, and can form dense stands, it is suitable for erosion control.Anderson JE, Shumar ML, Toft NL, Nowak RS (1987) Control of the soil water balance by sagebrush and three perennial grasses in a cold-desert environment. ''Arid Soil Research and Rehabilitation'' 4(1): 229-244.

References

External links

CalPhotos Photo Gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5368485 Lanceolatus

Description

Ecology

Uses

References

Further reading

External links