Poa nemoralis

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Poa nemoralis
Poa.nemoralis.in.may.germany.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus: Poa
Species:
P. nemoralis
Binomial name
Poa nemoralis
L.
Synonyms [1]
List
    • Agrestis alba(L.) Lunell
    • Agrostis albaL.
    • Agrostis aristataSinclair ex Steud.
    • Agrostis confertaWilld. ex Steud.
    • Agrostis cremenicaBesser ex Steud.
    • Agrostis distichaSchweigg. ex Steud.
    • Aira elodesBrign.
    • Aira helodesSteud.
    • Aira petraeaBellardi ex Steud.
    • Catabrosa helodesRoem. & Schult.
    • Decandolia alba(L.) T.Bastard
    • Eragrostis tenuisSteud.
    • Festuca asperrimaHornem. ex Steud.
    • Festuca depauperataBertol.
    • Milium album(L.) Lag.
    • Paneion nemorale(L.) Lunell
    • Poa acmocalyxKeng f. & L.Liu
    • Poa adjarica(Sommier & Levier) A.P.Khokhr.
    • Poa alexeenkoi(Tzvelev) Czerep.
    • Poa asperulaSteud.
    • Poa caespitosaPoir.
    • Poa carpatica subsp. supramontanaBernátová, Májovský, Kliment & Topercer
    • Poa cinereaVill.
    • Poa debilisThuill.
    • Poa dubiaSuter
    • Poa eligulataPavlov
    • Poa firmaWormsk. ex Roem. & Schult.
    • Poa firmula(Gaudin) Gray
    • Poa glaucescensRoth
    • Poa gracilescensSchrad.
    • Poa hypanicaProkudin
    • Poa junceaSuter
    • Poa juncoidesGaudin
    • Poa kumgansaniiOhwi
    • Poa lapponicaProkudin
    • Poa lapponica subsp. acmocalyx(Keng f. & L.Liu) Olonova & G.H.Zhu
    • Poa lapponica subsp. pilipes(Keng f. ex Shan Chen) Olonova & G.H.Zhu
    • Poa lapponica var. turiensisTzvelev
    • Poa marginataWilld.
    • Poa muralisHonck.
    • Poa nemoralis subsp. alexeenkoiTzvelev
    • Poa nemoralis f. glaucantha(Schleich. ex Gaudin) Ghisa & Beldie
    • Poa nemoralis subsp. hylaeaGalanin
    • Poa nemoralis subsp. hypanica(Prokudin) Tzvelev
    • Poa nemoralis subsp. lapponica(Prokudin) Tzvelev
    • Poa nemoralis var. loiseauiPortal
    • Poa nemoralis var. parcaN.R.Cui
    • Poa nemoralis var. polycladaPortal & Loiseau
    • Poa nemoralis var. popoviiTzvelev
    • Poa nemoralis subsp. subpolaris(Kuvaev) Tzvelev
    • Poa nemoralis var. zhitomiricaTzvelev
    • Poa parnelliiBab.
    • Poa pilipesKeng f. ex Shan Chen
    • Poa polymorphaWibel
    • Poa pseudocaesiaSchur
    • Poa pyramidalisClairv.
    • Poa rarifloraDesf.
    • Poa rectaWilld. ex Steud.
    • Poa salebrosaPanz. ex Steud.
    • Poa scheuchzeriSuter
    • Poa scopulorumButters & Abbe
    • Poa subpolarisKuvaev
    • Poa tenuisClairv.
    • Poa tenuisElliott
    • Poa tormentuosaButters & Abbe
    • Poa variegataHost ex Kunth
    • Vilfa alba(L.) P.Beauv.
    • Vilfa neglectaP.Beauv. ex Steud.

Poa nemoralis, the wood bluegrass, is a perennial plant in the family Poaceae. 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.

Contents

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, 30–60 cm (12–24 in) high. The panicle is slender, loose and branched. The spikelets 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 and can also reproduce vegetatively. [2]

Because of the characteristic lamina, similar to a stretched out arm, it is sometimes called "Wegweisergras" (signpost grass) in Germany. [3]

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. [2] Shade tolerant, it is often found in forests and grows up to half a metre tall. [3] It is generally distributed in Britain 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. [2] In the British Isles, it is found throughout the United Kingdom but at more scattered locations in Ireland, where it may have been introduced. [4]

Footnotes

  1. "Poa nemoralis L." Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 "Poa nemoralis (wood bluegrass)". Invasive Species Compendium. CABI. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  3. 1 2 Haeupler & Muer 2007: 672
  4. "Poa nemoralis". Online Atlas of the British and Irish Flora. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.

References