CALIFORNIA GRASSLANDS AND RANGE FORAGE GRASSES ARTHUR W. SAMPSON AGNES CHASE DONALD W. HEDRICK BULLETIN 724 MAY, 1951 CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION i THE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA . CALIFORNIA GRASSLANDS AND RANGE FORAGE GRASSES provides useful and technical information on the uncultivated or wild grass- lands, and the native and naturalized range forage grasses of California. This bulletin will be helpful to you if you are among these readers: 1 Stockmen who have had some botanical training and who will want to use the illustrated keys and descriptions to determine the identity and the relative usefulness of the grasses growing on their range; 2. Range technicians and range appraisers who are chiefly concerned with management, evaluations, and economic considerations of the state's range lands; and 3. Students of range management and related fields whose knowl- edge of ecology, forage value, and taxonomy of the range grasses is an essential part of their training or official work. THE AUTHORS: Arthur W. Sampson is Professor of Forestry and Plant Ecologist in the Experiment Station, Berkeley. Agnes Chase is Research Associate, U. S. National Herbarium, Smithsonian Institu- tion; formerly Senior Agrostologist, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Donald W. Hedrick is Research Assistant in the Department of Forestry; on leave from the Soil Conservation Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Manuscript submitted for publication August 22, 1949. CONTENTS PAGE Introduction . 5 Where Grasses Grow 7 Topography, climate, grassland soils, life zones, grasslands in relation to other plant associations Plant Succession and the Climax Cover 17 The Nutrition of Range Grasses 18 Annual vs. perennial nutrition, nutrition and plant growth, nutrient de- ficiencies Condition and Utilization of Grassland Ranges 22 Range condition classification, range utilization standards Artificial Range Reseeding 27 Characteristics of Grasses 27 Vegetative part, length of life and vegetative reproduction, flowers and seed Important Range Forage Grasses (See Contents, Next Page) . 31 Keys to tribes, genera, species; botanical distinctions, distribution, habitat, forage value, and reproduction of the more prominent individual species A Checklist of California Grasses 116 Includes all grasses growing naturally in California, arranged by tribes and genera Literature Cited 123 A List of Technical Words Used in This Bulletin, and Their Meanings 126 Index to California Range Forage Grasses 128 Includes all grasses referred to in the section, "Important Range Forage Grasses" [3] IMPORTANT RANGE FORAGE GRASSES CONTENTS TO MAIN DESCRIPTIVE SECTION, PP. 31-115 Key to tribes, 33 Needlegrasses {Stipa) , 86 Reedgrasses (Calamagrostis) Fescue-bluegrass-bromegrass tribe , 91 Timothy (Phleum) , 95 (Festuceae) , 34 Muhlygrasses (Muhlenbergia) ,96 Bromegrasses (Bromus) , 34 Alkali sacaton {Sporobolus) , 99 Fescuegr asses {Festuca) , 42 Ricegrasses (Oryzopsis) , 100 Bluegr asses (Pou) , 47 Threeawns {Aristida) , 102 Saltgrasses (Distichlis) , 53 Drooping woodreed (Cinna) 103 Melicgrasses (Melica),54> , Nitgrass {Gastridium) , 104 Mannagrass (Glyceria) , 59 Orchardgrass {Dactylis) , 60 Curly mesquite tribe (Zoysieae) , 105 Lovegrasses (Eragrostis) , 61 Big galletagrass (Hilaria), 105 Alkaligrass {Puccinellia) , 62 Wheatgrass and barleygrass tribe Grama tribe {Chlorideae) , 105 (//ordeae),62 Gramagrasses {Bouteloua) , 106 Wheatgrasses [Agropyron) ,63 Sloughgrass {Beckmannia) , 107 Wild-rye grasses {Elymus) , 65 Bermudagrass {Cynodon) , 107 Squirreltails {Sitanion) , 68 Feather fingergrass (Chloris) , 108 Bottlebrush (Hystrix), 69 Canarygrass tribe {Phalarideae) , 109 Barleygrasses {Hordeum) , 70 Canarygrass (Phalaris) , 109 Ryegrasses {Lolium) , 72 Sweet vernalgrass (Anthoxanthum) , Goatgrass [Aegilops) , 73 110 Oat tribe {Aveneae) , 74 Veldtgrasses {Ehrharta) , 110 Wild oats (A vena) , 74 Millet tribe (Paniceae), 111 Oatgrasses ( Danthonia) , 75 Dallisgrass {Paspalum) Hairgrasses {Deschampsia) ,77 , 111 Pacific panicum (Panicum) ,112 Junegrass (Koeleria) , 79 Barnyard grass (Echinochloa) ,112 Trisetum {Trisetum) , 79 Kikuyu grass (Pennisetum) , 113 Tall oatgrass ( Arrhenatherum) , 81 Velvetgrass {Holcus), 81 Sorghum tribe (Andropogoneae) , 114 Timothy tribe (Agrostideae) , 82 Cane beardgrass {Andropogon) , 114 Redtops {Agrostis) , 83 Johnsongrass (Sorghum) , 114 [4] CALIFORNIA GRASSLANDS AND RANGE FORAGE GRASSES The grasses are by far the most impor- eludes a few troublesome species (22). tant forage plants occurring naturally on Some cause mechanical injury to livestock the ranges. Many broad-leaved herbs because of the sharp or barbed awns of (forbs or weeds) and shrubs add to the the mature seed heads, but may be good natural range forage, but grasses prob- forage plants in the earlier growth stages. ably supply the major sustenance for live- The awns become attached to the wool stock on California range lands. The of sheep, and to the skin, nostrils, mouth, maintenance of a vigorous and luxurious throat, and eyes of grazing animals gen- stand of the better grasses goes hand in erally, causing sores and occasionally hand with a well-planned livestock pro- death. Other troublesome species are duction program. those, such as the wild barleygrasses Another important function of grasses {Hordeum spp.) and the squirreltail is their capacity to protect the soil from grasses {Sitanion spp.), whose heads excessive erosion. Soil well covered with break up at maturity liberating several grass absorbs rain or melting snow sharply barbed bristles. Goatgrass (Aegi- rapidly and resists the inroads of erosion lops triuncialis) , a relative of wheat, is a to a remarkable degree. This is because despised Mediterranean invader, its long the leaf blades and stems of a well-estab- rigid barbed bristles causing great suf- lished grass area break the force of the fering to cattle, sheep, and goats. A few individual raindrops, and the numerous common bromegrasses {Bromus spp.) of fibrous roots bind the soil firmly. Runoff Mediterranean origin, notably ripgut is held to a minimum on well-grassed grass (B. rigidus) , also cause mechanical lands. On the other hand, where over- injury. The geneticists are hopeful of per- grazing, especially of sloping areas, has fecting range species which may partly resulted in exposing the soil to the ele- replace these mechanically troublesome ments, wind and water erosion may soon species. remove so much topsoil as to make re- grassing difficult if not impossible. HOW THIS BULLETIN IS RESEARCH ON GRASSES ORGANIZED In presenting California grasses the Even though grass stands are usually authors first discuss where grasses grow. highly nutritious and palatable, agricul- This is followed considering the tural science has not overlooked the pos- by suc- cession of plants on the range, and the sibility of improving individual grass "climax cover." Then comes a discussion species or their variants. To this end, geneticists of the College of Agriculture of grass as forage, including the nutri- of the University of California are striv- tion, utilization, and management of ing to augment the grass forage of wild grasslands. With the foregoing as back- range lands through selective breeding ground material, the characteristics of 1 true grasses are presented; and finally and cross pollination (35, 55 J. The grass family, like many other eco- there is a discussion of the more impor- nomically important plant groups, in- tant individual forage species. A check- list of the more than 400 grass species of 1 See "Literature Cited" for references made in the text by number. the state is given as an appendix. [5] Fig. 1. Relief map of California showing topographical features. [6] WHERE GRASSES GROW The varied physiography of California The valley floor is covered with rich, al- largely determines the distribution, com- luvial, highly productive soils. Most of position, and zonal relations of the grass- the valley land is cultivated or in irrigated lands and associated vegetation. The great pasture, but the more alkaline areas are range in elevation, the extremes of cli- in native grassland which is annually mate, andthlT variation in . soils found grazed. within the state all influence the growth Two smaller topographic units are of grasses. If grasslands are to be grazeoj found outside the main mountain chains. properly, effects of topography, climate, The high arid plateau lying to the east -soil, life zone, and relation to other plant of the Sierra Nevada Range belongs to associations must be considered. the Great Basin drainage area. This sec- tion is similar to much of Nevada and TOPOGRAPHY Utah in local relief and vegetation. Next The main topographic features are to the ocean a narrow coastal plain, which simple in broad outline but complex in widens out below Point Conception in detail. (Fig. 1.) Santa Barbara County, supports grass- Mountain ranges along the eastern and lands of local importance. western boundaries enclose the large The deserts of California are found Central Valley, which is bounded on the south of the Tehachapi Mountains and north by cross mountains between the east of the Coast Range. The relief in this Coast Range and the Cascades and on area is characterized by numerous low the south by the Tehachapi Mountains. mountains and valleys with the only A narrow coastal belt parallels the ocean, drainage outlets leading into the Colo- and east of the Sierra Nevada Range lies rado River. Except for irrigated sections