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Lolium perenne

Common name:	Perennial Ryegrass	Family:	Gramineae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	74, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Europe to E. Asia.
Habitat:	Meadows and weedy places[74].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	L. boucheanum[G] L. marschallii[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Common Darnel [L], Common Ray [H], Darnel [H], Darnell [E], Engels Raaigras [D], Perennial Ray [L], Perennial Rye Grass [B], Perennial Rye-grass [L], Perennial Ryegrass [FEIS,P], Ray-grass [H], Rye Grass [L], Rye-grass [H],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	perenne = perennial
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Cyperales. Renamed to Poaceae -- Grass family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Egypt Europe

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen perennial growing to 1m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 5 and is not frost tender. It is in leaf all year. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid, very alkaline and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil and can tolerate drought. It can tolerate atmospheric pollution.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Meadow.

Edible Uses

Seed.

Seed - cooked. Used as a cereal[177]. The seed has a nutritional value similar to oats (Avena sativa) and contain gluten[269]. An emergency food, it is only used when all else fails[177]. The seed is rather small and fiddly to use[K]. Yields of 1 tonne per hectare have been achieved, though around 500kg is a more common yield[269].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Astringent Cancer.

The plant has occasionally been used in the treatment of cancer, diarrhoea, haemorrhages and malaria[269].

Other Uses

Biomass.

The plant has the potential to be used as a source of biomass. Yields of up to 25 tonnes per hectare have been reported from Europe. In the absence of definitive yield information an average yield of 17.5 tonnes of dry matter per hectare per year and an energy content of 17.5 GJ per metric tonne are assumed[269].

Cultivation details

Adapted to mild, humid temperate climates, this species grows best on rather heavy, rich, moist soils, but also does well on well-manured lighter soils with sufficient moisture[269]. It dislikes shade and requires a well-drained soil[200]. It prefers a pH in the range 6 - 7, though it can tolerate a range from 4.5 - 8.2[269]. Plants are moderately drought resistant, they tolerate atmspheric pollution and salt in the soil, and can also succeed when planted on minespoil[269]. They prefer an annual precipitation in the range of 21 - 176cm[269].
Many cultivars have been developed by selection of individual plants, clones and families for specific purposes, such as for lawns, pastures and hay[269].
A fast growing plant, it combines particularly well with white clover (Trifolium repens)[269].

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ in the spring. It is also possible to sow the seed in situ in the autumn in most parts of Britain. This will give larger plants and heavier yields.

Cultivars

'Norlea': Developed in Ontario, it has good winter hardiness and considerably outyields other cultivars in forage and seed production. Useful as turf grass, it is susceptible to leaf-rust in some areas[269].
'Linn': Developed in Oregon, it is one of the best Oregon perennial types, with good seed yield[269].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A& M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[FAO] Data (Description, Habitat, Location and Use) from the FAO's Grassland Index.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HEC] Use, Folk Medicine, etc. from Handbook of Energy Crops by James Duke
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[269] Duke. J. Handbook of Energy Crops - 1983
Published only on the Internet, excellent information on a wide range of plants.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.