Native Grasses of Ring Mountain
This guide includes all the native grass species known to occur at Ring Mountain Open Space Preserve.
blue wild rye
Elymus glaucus is a species of wild rye known by the common name blue wild rye. This grass is native to North America from Alaska to New York to northern Mexico. It is a common and widespread species of wild rye.
big squirreltail
Elymus multisetus is a species of wild rye known by the common name big squirreltail.
slender wheatgrass
Elymus trachycaulus is a species of wild rye known by the common name slender wheatgrass. It is native to much of North America, where it grows in widely varied habitats from northern Canada to Mexico.
beardless wild rye
Also know as "creeping wild rye", and formerly known as Leymus triticoides, this rhizomatus perennial grass can form large, homogenous stands, especially in wetter areas such as ditches, seeps, or wet pastures. Many plants are seldom seen flowering.
Meadow barley
Meadow barley tolerates wetter soil conditions than some other grass species and can be found in seeps and/or ditches, or simply in areas that stay wet a bit longer or even along trails that don't appear to have increased soil moisture compared to other areas.
