Download Eragrostis lehmaniana1

Eragrostis lehmanniana (Nees)
By Justin Ladd, Native plants 2003
Common Name(s): Lehmanns love grass Atherstone lovegrass, land grass
Family: Poaceae
Synonymy:
Etymology: Eragrostis means love grass (13).
Identification
Growth form: Grass (Graminoid), between 18 inches and 2 feet tall
Roots
Stem: Multiple stems prostrate rooting at nodes. (9)
Leaves: 2-6 inches long up to 1/16 inch wide, involuted, can be stiff(8)
Inflorescence/flowers: Open, spreading 3-6 inches long each of the branches tipped with
a small grey seed head. In flower the numerous feathery inflorescence give fields of
grass a grey color.(8)
Fruit: Fruits are small seeds (1).
Similar species: It is distinguished from E. curvula in having papery lower leaf-sheaths
with rounded nerves not very closely arranged (1).
Ecology
Life history: Perennial grass short lived.
Native/Introduced: Introduced from South Africa to help control erosion in the west in
1932(8, 9).
Photosynthetic pathway: C4
Phenology: Most active growth occurs during spring through fall. Seeds mature during
summer. (7)
Distribution: Found in California, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma.
It is best adapted to grow at elevations of 3,000-4,000 feet (7, 8).
Uses: Valuable forage grass for livestock and wild animals. Also considered valuable
due to its ability to green early in spring and stay green late into fall. Used to help control
erosion along roadsides and areas of heavy rainfall. (8, 9)
References
1. Barnyard, E.S., Yates, S.F. 1998. North American Wildlife, Wildflowers. The Readers
Digest Association, Inc.
2. Elmore, F.H. 1976. Shrubs and Trees of the Southwest Uplands. Southwest Parks and
Monuments Association. Tucson, AZ
3. Roach, A.W. 1982. Outdoor Plants of the Southwest. Taylor Publishing Company.
4. Blackwell, W.H. 1990. Poisonous and Medicinal Plants. Prentice Hall Englewood
Cliffs.
5. Critteden, M. 1977. Trees of the West. Celestial Arts
6. Bowers, J.E. 1993. Shrubs and Trees of the Southwest Deserts Southwest Parks and
Monuments Association Tucson, AZ
7. USDA Natural Resource Conservation Plants Profile
http://www.plants.usda.gov
8. Ruyle, G., Young, D. 1997. Arizona Range Grasses. Cooperative Extension College
of agriculture the University of A.Z. Tucson, AZ.
9. Barkworth, M., Capels, K. 2003. Flora of N. America 2-5. New York Oxford. Oxford
university press.
10. Epple, A. 1995. Field Guide to the Plants of AZ. Lew Ann publishing company mesa
AZ.
11. Wiggins, I. 1964. Vegetation and Flora of the Sonoran Desert Volume 1. Stanford
University press.
12. Millspaugh. 1974. American Medicinal Plants. Dover Publications, New York, N.Y.
13. Hill, D.G. 2002. Names of Plants 3rd Edition. Cambridge University Press.