Elymus trachycaulus
 
 

 Slender Wheatgrass, slender wildrye
 
Prepared by: D. Neil Block
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
  Taxonomy
  Synonymy: Agropyron brevifolium Scribn., Agropyron pauciflorum (Schwein.) Hitchc. ex Silveus, Agropyron tenerum Vasey, Agropyron teslinense Porsild & Senn, Agropyron trachycaulum (Link) Malte ex H. F. Lewis, Roegneria pauciflora (Schwein.) Hyl.,
Roegneria trachycaula (Link) Nevski, Triticum trachycaulum Link, Agropyron caninum (L.) P. Beauv. subsp. majus (Vasey) C. L. Hitchc., Agropyron pauciflorum (Schwein.) Hitchc. ex Silveus subsp. majus (Vasey) Melderis, Agropyron pauciflorum (Schwein.) Hitchc. ex Silveus subsp. novae-angliae (Scribn.) Melderis, Agropyron pauciflorum (Schwein.) Hitchc. ex Silveus subsp. teslinense (Porsild & Senn) Melderis, Agropyron violaceum (Hornem.) Lange subsp. andinum (Scribn. & J. G. Sm.) Melderis, Elymus trachycaulus (Link) Gould ex Shinners subsp. andinus (Scribn. & J. G. Sm.) Á. Löve & D. Löve, Elymus trachycaulus (Link) Gould ex Shinners subsp. novae-angliae (Scribn.) Tzvelev, Elymus trachycaulus (Link) Gould ex Shinners subsp. teslinensis (Porsild & Senn) A. Löve, Agropyron caninum (L.) P. Beauv. var. andinum (Scribn. & J. G. Sm.) C. L. Hitchc., Agropyron caninum (L.) P. Beauv. var. hornemannii (Koch) Pease & Moore, Agropyron caninum (L.) P. Beauv. var. mitchellii S. L. Welsh, Agropyron pauciflorum (Schwein.) Hitchc. ex Silveus var. novae-angliae (Scribn.) Taylor & MacBryde, Agropyron subsecundum (Link) Hitchc. var. andinum (Scribn. & J. G. Sm.) Hitchc., Agropyron trachycaulum (Link) Malte ex H. F. Lewis var. majus (Vasey) Fernald Agropyron trachycaulum (Link) Malte ex H. F. Lewis var. novae-angliae (Scribn.) Fernald, Agropyron violaceum (Hornem.) Lange var. andinum Scribn. & J. G. Sm., Elymus trachycaulus (Link) Gould ex Shinners var. andinus (Scribn. & J. G. Sm.) Dorn, Elymus trachycaulus (Link) Gould ex Shinners var. majus (Vasey) Beetle
Latin name meaning: Elymus from the Greek elumos, an ancient grain.
Family: Poaceae
Tribe: Triticeae
Common names: Common names of this grass are slender wheatgrass and slender wildrye.
Similar species: Elymus trachycaulus subsp. subsecundus (Agropyron subsecundum) is similar to slender wheatgrass, and is distinguished by long (10-30 mm) lemma awns
   
  Key Identification Characteristics
  Growth form: Slender wheatgrass has a cespitose growth habit.
Roots: The roots of slender wheatgrass are dense and fibrous.
Leaves: Slender wheatgrass leaves are flat or folded, slender, elongate. A narrow white band characterizes the leaf margins.
Stem/sheath: The culm is usually erect, 0.5-1.5 m tall, slender, green, and glabrous. Sheaths are round and open, sometimes purplish at the base.
Auricles: The auricles are 0.3-1 mm long, or absent.
Ligule: The ligule is a rounded, ciliate membrane 0.4-0.8 mm in length.
Inflorescence/spikelets/florets: The spike is generally 10-25 cm in length, erect, slender, with one spikelet per node. The spikelets are well spaced, overlapping one half of the next. Often the lowest most spikelet does not over lap the one above. Lemmas and glumes have a short awn. Lemmas are rough-hairy.
   
  Ecological & Physiological Relations
  Life history: Slender wheatgrass is a short-lived (5 years) perennial (26). The grass is a tetraploid (2n=28), self-pollinating, and hybridizes with other members of the Triticeae tribe (3, 16, 21, 48).
Native/Introduced: This grass is native, with many cultivars developed.
Photosynthetic pathway: The photosynthetic pathway of slender wheatgrass is C3 (52).
Phenology: Growth of slender wheatgrass begins in mid-April to early June. Flower stalks begin to appear in late June, with flowering occurring shortly thereafter. Seed ripening occurs throughout the summer, and is followed by dissemination in the fall and winter (36).
Distribution: Slender wheatgrass is widely distributed throughout North America, from Greenland to northern Mexico at elevations from near sea level to 4000 m (52). The grass grows on moist, well-drained soils of medium texture, and is tolerant of salinity (8, 19, 42, 44, 52).
Succession: Slender wheatgrass is a pioneer species in areas such as gravel slopes, abandoned coal mine sites, and in burned pine forest (4, 17, 20, 43). Percent composition of the grass in the stand increases from 3 to 8% following clear-cut logging in Utah. (5)
Indicator value: Slender wheatgrass has great ecotypic variation allowing it to thrive on many sites (41). However, it is generally indicative of well-drained soils of medium texture and moderate salinity (8, 19, 42, 44, 52). Emergence, root yield, and herbage yield of the grass are reduced 50% relative to control at electrical conductivities of 12, 12, and 17 mmohs cm-1,respectively, with not plants growing at 35-40 mmohs cm-1 (31).
Canopy/ground cover, LAI, height: In saline areas, slender wheatgrass comprises 25% of the canopy cover (11). In fescue grasslands, slender wheatgrass comprises 11-29% of the canopy cover (51). Leaf height has been measured at 30-34 cm (47).
Competitive ability as seedlings, in mixes, invasive: Slender wheatgrass is a poor competitor with weeds because of its short lifespan (26). Removal of forb competition increases herbage production (35, 36). The grass is a good competitor with Bromus inermis (smooth brome) on dry sites (39).
   
  Management Considerations
  Grazing: In Saskatchewan, slender wheatgrass is a decreaser in the Brown and Dark Brown soil zones, but an increaser in the Black and Gray soil zones (1). The grass also increases with cattle grazing in fescue grasslands in Manitoba and decreases under sheep grazing in mountainous regions (51, 7). In Utah ungrazed slender wheatgrass was 9% taller and produced 69% more biomass than similar stands with 40-60% utilization (12). Average dry matter yield for this grass is between 1200-2600 kg ha-1 (26, 27, 28). Crude protein averages 22-25% in the spring, dropping to 10-11 % by fall (23, 27, 50). Phosphorus content ranges from 0.23-0.31% in the spring, but decreases to 0.14-0.17% by fall (23,27,50). In vitro organic matter digestibility ranges from 45-64% (26, 27). Acid detergent fiber increases from 21% early in the growing season to 40% late in the growing season (50).
Burning: Spring burning is the most damaging to slender wheatgrass, particularly if burned when plants are growing. (53). The grass is favored by summer burning, increasing basal cover by 0.5 cm2 m-2 on burned sites by late summer (38). Fires of moderate severity tend to increase herbage production of the grass, with increases of up to 90 kg ha-1 (4). Removal of litter by burning favors establishment of slender wheatgrass seedlings (37).
Restoration: Slender wheatgrass is widely used for revegetation. The grass was one of the first native western grasses cultivated with many cultivars developed from ecotypes (22). These cultivars include Primar, Revenue, Mecca, Summit, Highlander, Orbit, Grazier, Fyra, Pryor, Adanac, and Hillcrest. The grass has been used for reclamation of oil sands, coal mine spoils, alpine tundra, roadsides, and saline areas including sodic mine spoils (2, 9, 10, 14, 15, 49). There are 295,055 seeds kg-1 and a seeding rate of 130 pure live seed m-2 is recommended (10, 46). Seed viability decreases as the storage time increases (30). Optimum seeding depth is 1.25 cm, with a maximum planting depth of about 6 cm (10, 34). When used as a dryland forage crop, maximum herbage is produced with 1 m row spacing (13). Adding nitrogen fertilizer on dryland stands reduces productivity (13). Seed production, herbage production, and canopy cover increase under irrigation (13, 15). Slender wheatgrass is tolerant of flooding, with mature plants withstanding 49-63 days of flooding, seedlings withstand 21-35 days, and seeds remain viable after 35-56 days of flooding (6, 32, 33). Cultivars of the grass are well suited to moderately saline areas, and have shown 100 % seedling establishment (23, 42, 44, 49).
Wildlife: Slender wheatgrass is an important food for birds, rodents, and ungulates (5, 52, 51). Pocket gopher activity increases slender wheatgrass herbage production, as the grass is given a competitive advantage through the rodents' preference for other plants (18, 29). Earthworm activity increases shoot and root biomass through nutrient mobilization (45).
Other: Slender wheatgrass is resistant to the Russian wheat aphid. (24, 25) The grass is susceptible to the fungi Ophiobolus graminis, Helminthosporium sativum, and Claviceps sp. (40)
   
  References
 
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