''Achnatherum richardsonii'' is a species of

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...

known by the common names Richardson's needlegrass, spreading needlegrass, and Canada mountain-ricegrass. It is native to northwestern North America, where it is distributed from

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

''Achnatherum richardsonii''.
USDA Plants Profile. and

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

through the western Canadian provinces south to

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

.Esser, Lora L. 1992
''Achnatherum richardsonii''.
In: Fire Effects Information System, nline U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. This is a tufted perennial

bunchgrass Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perenni ...

growing up to a meter tall. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is open with spreading branches. The spikelet has a twisted awn up to 2.5 centimeters in length.''Achnatherum richardsonii''.
Grass Manual Treatment. This grass grows in several habitat types, including

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or arti ...

s, and

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts ...

forests. It can be found on moraines, plains, and mountain slopes. It is a dominant or codominant grass species in some areas, such as the western Canadian grasslands and the climax plant communities of Glacier National Park. Plants associated with it include Canada bluegrass (''Poa compressa''), prairie Junegrass (''Koeleria cristata''), rough fescue (''Festuca altaica''),

Idaho fescue ''Festuca idahoensis'' is a species of grass known by the common names Idaho fescue and blue bunchgrass. It is native to western North America, where it is widespread and common. It can be found in many ecosystems, from shady forests to open plai ...

(''F. idahoensis''), bearded wheatgrass (''Elymus caninus''), western needlegrass (''Achnatherum occidentalis''), timber danthonia (''Danthonia intermedia''), tufted hairgrass (''Deschampsia cespitosa''),

sedges The Cyperaceae are a family of graminoid (grass-like), monocotyledonous flowering plants known as sedges. The family is large, with some 5,500 known species described in about 90 genera, the largest being the "true sedges" genus ''Carex'' wit ...

(''Carex'' spp.),

shrubby cinquefoil ''Dasiphora fruticosa'' is a species of hardy deciduous flowering shrub in the family Rosaceae, native to the cool temperate and subarctic regions of the northern hemisphere, often growing at high altitudes in mountains. ''Dasiphora frutico ...

(''Potentilla fruticosa''),

bearberry Bearberries ( indigenous kinnickinnick) are three species of dwarf shrubs in the genus ''Arctostaphylos''. Unlike the other species of ''Arctostaphylos'' (see manzanita), they are adapted to Arctic and Subarctic climates, and have a circumpolar ...

(''Arctostaphylos uva-ursi''), timothy (''Phleum pratense''), common yarrow (''Achillea millefolium''), prairiesmoke avens (''Geum triflorum''), northern bedstraw (''Galium boreale''), Hood's phlox (''Phlox hoodii''), and bluebell (''Campanula rotundifolia''). This grass is a common food source for livestock and wildlife such as elk and

bighorn sheep The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of sheep native to North America. It is named for its large horns. A pair of horns might weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspec ...

on the Great Plains. It is preferable when young because as it matures, the fruits become hard and sharp.

References

External links

The Nature Conservancy
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4673858 richardsonii Bunchgrasses of North America Grasses of Canada Grasses of the United States Flora of the Northwestern United States Flora of Western Canada