Participant Info

Species

Lolium arundinaceum [Bromus arundinaceus] [Festuca arundinacea] [Schedonorus arundinaceus] etc.

Family

Poaceae

CommonName

tall fescue

Presence

yes

Status

exotic

EarliestDate

LatestDate

Ecosystem

basin, shrubland, foothill

Geobotanical

SSanjuans, UBasin

Counties

Rio Grande

Passes

WildlifePreserves

Other Localities

PhotoRecords

Rajer70 Rio Grande Co, Pronghorn Trail, July 2022

Comments

Cool season and perennial, tall fescue is common around Colorado but little recorded from the Watershed. Lolium arundinaceum (usually under the genus "Festuca" or "Schenodorus"] has been vouchered from a ditch bank near Monte Vista (Rio Grande Co, 1939) and from the Colorado State Experimental Farm (Rio Grande Co, 1951). A third observation was made along the Pronghorn trail a little south of Del Norte (2022, iNaturalist #124782417). Introduced from Europe, the species has been used for soil erosion, cattle forage, lawn toughening, and turf building. It can be toxic to cattle. The species has been recorded from every state of the USA except Ohio. Observations follow the Rio Grande drainage through New Mexico but no farther down stream inTexas.

Annotation