Ripgut Brome Awns

Ripgut brome is an annual brome native to europe northern africa and western asia and very widely introduced elsewhere in the world including in north america.

Ripgut brome awns.

The spikelets have longer awns than most brome grasses. Bodies are 20 35 mm long and awns are greater than 10 mm. The common name ripgut brome refers to the heavy sclerotization of the species creating a hazard to livestock. The ligule is long whitish and has a jagged tip.

1st glume is 1 veined. The open panicles resemble oats with long often compressed spikelets containing 1 2 inch long awns. Ripgut brome bromus diandrus exotic and undesirable lemmas taper into 2 narrow teeth. However it has an extensive fibrous root system and tillers profusely.

Soft hairs cover the leaf blades and sheaths. Large spikelets with needlelike awns 1 to 2 inches 2 5 5 cm long distinguishes ripgut brome from the much shorter awns of soft brome. The seeds of the plant can penetrate the skin of livestock and the callus and awns can penetrate the mouth eyes and intestines of livestock. It produces dense low leafy growth in the fall.

It does not have creeping stolons or rhizomes. Ripgut brome seedlings have a tubular sheath. Description ripgut brome is a loosely cespitose or tufted annual cool season bunchgrass. Related or similar plants.

Cheatgrass bromus tectorum exotic undesirable and state regulated seedlings have very hairy blades and sheaths. Soft brome bromus hordeaceus. Within new england it has been collected only near seaports in massachusetts. The individual flowers have tiny rough teeth that can injure livestock and pets.