Timothy | |
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Habitus, ssp. pratense | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Clade: | Commelinids |
Order: | Poales |
Family: | Poaceae |
Subfamily: | Pooideae |
Genus: | Phleum |
Species: | P. pratense |
Binomial name | |
Phleum pratense | |
Synonyms [1] | |
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Timothy [2] (Phleum pratense) is an abundant perennial grass native to most of Europe except for the Mediterranean region. It is also known as timothy-grass, meadow cat's-tail or common cat's tail. [3] It is a member of the genus Phleum , consisting of about 15 species of annual and perennial grasses.
It is probably named after Timothy Hanson, an American farmer and agriculturalist said to have introduced it from New England to the southern states in the early 18th century. [4] [5] [6] Upon his recommendation it became a major source of hay and cattle fodder to British farmers in the mid-18th century. [7]
Timothy can be confused with meadow foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis) or purple-stem cat's-tail (Phleum phleoides).
Timothy grows to 48–150 cm (19–59 in) tall, with leaves up to 43 cm (17 in) long and 1.3 cm (0.5 in) broad. The leaves are hairless, rolled rather than folded, and the lower sheaths turn dark brown.
It has no stolons or rhizomes, and no auricles.
The flowerhead is 70–152 mm (2.75–6 in) long and 6.4–12.7 mm (0.25–0.5 in) broad, with densely packed spikelets. It flowers from June until September. The stamen are pink.
The ligule is short and blunt.
It grows well in heavy soil, and is noted for its resistance to cold and drought, and thus ability to grow in dry upland or poor sandy soils. In pasture it tends to be overwhelmed by more competitive grasses. After cutting it grows slowly.
There are two subspecies:
Timothy was unintentionally introduced to North America by early settlers, and was first described in 1711 by John Hurd from plants growing in New Hampshire. Hurd named the grass "hurd grass" but a farmer named Timothy Hanson began to promote cultivation of it as a hay about 1720, and the grass has been known by its present name since then. Timothy has now become naturalized throughout most of the US and Canada.
It is commonly grown for cattle feed and, in particular, as hay for horses. It is relatively high in fiber, especially when cut late. It is considered a harsh, coarse grass little relished by livestock if cut earlier. It is considered part of the standard mix for grass hay and provides quality nutrition for horses. Timothy hay is a staple food for domestic pet rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas, and degus, often making up the bulk of their diet. Timothy hay is rich in long fiber and its abrasive texture helps to grind down the teeth, keeping both the teeth and jaw in good order.
Some caterpillars use it as a food plant, e.g. the Essex skipper (Thymelicus lineola) and the marbled white (Melanargia galathea). It also grows in roadsides and abandoned fields but generally requires nutrient-rich soils.
Plants persist through the winter. Dead, straw-colored flowering stems may persist, but only for a short time, and are recognized by the distinctive spike-like inflorescence.
Clinical data | |
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Routes of administration | Sublingual |
ATC code | |
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Identifiers | |
DrugBank | |
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Timothy grass pollen allergen is used to treat hay fever. [13] [14] [15] [16]
Breeding programs for forage grasses and especially timothy have been focusing on the improvement of dry matter yield, resistance to disease, dry matter digestibility, and nutritional value, which depends on target species and environment. Due to high phenotypic and genetic heterogeneity in individual plants, and the polyploidy of many species, breeding programs for timothy are accompanied by some difficulties.[ citation needed ]
It is often confused with meadow foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis). Timothy flowers later, from June until August, whereas meadow foxtail flowers from April until June. The spikelets of timothy are twin hornlike projections arranged in cylindrical panicles, whereas foxtail has a soft, single awn. [17]
Purple-stem cat's-tail (Phleum phleoides) prefers lighter soils and grows on chalk downland.
Mountain timothy (Phleum alpinum) grows above 1,800 m (6,000 feet). [18] A "wild Timothy" was found to grow in Yosemite at the time of its discovery but may have been a foxtail. [19] [20]
Timothy canary grass (Phalaris angusta), another species with a similar cylindrical panicle, is toxic to livestock.
Alopecurus pratensis, known as the meadow foxtail or the field meadow foxtail, is a perennial grass belonging to the grass family (Poaceae). It is native to Europe and Asia.
Poa pratensis, commonly known as Kentucky bluegrass, smooth meadow-grass, or common meadow-grass, is a perennial species of grass native to practically all of Europe, North Asia and the mountains of Algeria and Morocco. There is disagreement about its native status in North America, with some sources considering it native and others stating the Spanish Empire brought the seeds of Kentucky bluegrass to the New World in mixtures with other grasses. It is a common and incredibly popular lawn grass in North America with the species being spread over all of the cool, humid parts of the United States. In its native range, Poa pratensis forms a valuable pasture plant, characteristic of well-drained, fertile soil. It is also used for making lawns in parks and gardens and has established itself as a common invasive weed across cool moist temperate climates like the Pacific Northwest and the Northeastern United States. When found on native grasslands in Canada, for example, it is considered an unwelcome exotic plant, and is indicative of a disturbed and degraded landscape.
Alopecurus, or foxtail grass, is a common and widespread genus of plants in the grass family. It is common across temperate and subtropical parts of Eurasia, northern Africa, and the Americas, as well as naturalized in Australia and on various islands.
The small skipper is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae.
Thymelicus lineola, known in Europe as the Essex skipper and in North America as the European skipper, is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae.
Molinia caerulea, known by the common name purple moor-grass, is a species of grass that is native to Europe, west Asia, and north Africa. It grows in locations from the lowlands up to 2,300 m (7,546 ft) in the Alps. Like most grasses, it grows best in acid soils, ideally pH values of between 3.5 and 5, however, it can continue to live under more extreme conditions, sometimes to as low as 2. It is common on moist heathland, bogs and moorland throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Introduced populations exist in northeastern and northwestern North America.
A foxtail is a spikelet or cluster of a grass, that serves to disperse its seeds as a unit. Thus, the foxtail is a type of diaspore or plant dispersal unit. Some grasses that produce a foxtail are themselves called "foxtail", also "spear grass". They can become a health hazard for dogs, cats, and other domestic animals, and a nuisance for people.
Alopecurus myosuroides is an annual grass, native to Eurasia, found in moist meadows, deciduous forests, and on cultivated and waste land. It is also known as slender meadow foxtail, black-grass, twitch grass, and black twitch.
Phleum is a genus of annual and perennial plants in the grass family. The genus is native to Europe, Asia and north Africa, with one species also in North and South America.
North Meadow, Cricklade is a hay meadow near the town of Cricklade, in Wiltshire, England. It is 24.6 hectares in size. It is a traditionally managed lowland hay-meadow, or lammas land, and is grazed in common between 12 August and 12 February each year, and cut for hay no earlier than 1 July. This pattern of land use and management has existed for many centuries and has resulted in the species rich grassland flora and fauna present on the site.
Lolium pratense, meadow fescue is a perennial species of grass, which is often used as an ornamental in gardens, and is also an important forage crop. It grows in meadows, roadsides, old pastures, and riversides on moist, rich soils, especially on loamy and heavy soils.
Poa trivialis, is a perennial plant regarded in the US as an ornamental plant. It is part of the grass family.
British NVC community MG4 is one of the mesotrophic grassland communities in the British National Vegetation Classification system. It is one of four such communities associated with well-drained permanent pastures and meadows.
Thorpe Hay Meadow is a 6.4-hectare (16-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest west of Staines-upon-Thames in Surrey. It is owned and managed by the Surrey Wildlife Trust.
Alopecurus arundinaceus, the creeping meadow foxtail or creeping foxtail, is a rhizomatous perennial species in the Grass family (Poaceae). Native to Eurasia and northern Africa, and widely introduced elsewhere, this sod forming grass is useful as a forage and for erosion control. It flowers between April and July, depending on its location. It grows in damp or saline grasslands and banks of waterways, and on mountains up to 1,200 m. However, according to the United States Bureau of Plant, Alopecurus arundinaceus was found at elevations up to 8500–9500 feet.
Phleum phleoides is a perennial grass native to most of Europe, North Africa, and temperate Asia. Culms are erect and 10–70 centimetres (3.9–27.6 in) in height; leaf blades are 5–12 centimetres (2.0–4.7 in) long by 1–3.5 millimetres (0.039–0.138 in) wide.
Danthonia compressa is a species of grass known by the common names mountain oatgrass, flattened oatgrass, and slender oatgrass.
Sisyrinchium sarmentosum is a species of flowering plant in the iris family known by the common names mountain blue-eyed grass and pale blue-eyed-grass. It is native to the Pacific Northwest of North America, where it is known from a part of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon.