Lolium perenne
Environmental Weed (2024)
Common names
perennial rye grass
Biostatus
Exotic
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Grasses
Detailed description
Loosely tufted, dark green, hairless, perennial grass. Leaves soft, thin, 30–200 × 2–6 mm, regularly ribbed above, very glossy and smooth beneath, joined to stem with small collar. Leaf-sheath reddish-purplish at base; inner sheath smooth, pale green; emerging leaf folded. Ligule up to 2 mm long, membranous, light green. Seedhead distinctive, erect, thin, flattened, slightly zig-zagged; with seeds in small clusters arranged alternately.
Similar taxa
The seedhead is distinctive with flattened and slightly zig-zag form.
Habitat
Terrestrial. Roadsides and tracks, pasture, river flats and banks, waste land and sand dunes, lowland to montane
Conservation status
Not applicable
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Ecology
Year naturalised
1855
Origin
Eur, temp Asia, N Afr
Reason for introduction
Agricultural
Tolerances
Tolerates wet to dryish soils, high to moderate fertility, can re-sprout after damage and grazing, tolerates warm to cold temperatures.
Life cycle and dispersal
Perennial. Reproduces by seed.
Wetland plant indicator status rating
Information derived from the revised national wetland plant list prepared to assist councils in delineating and monitoring wetlands (Clarkson et al., 2021 Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Contract Report LC3975 for Hawke’s Bay Regional Council). The national plant list categorises plants by the extent to which they are found in wetlands and not ‘drylands’. The indicator status ratings are OBL (obligate wetland), FACW (facultative wetland), FAC (facultative), FACU (facultative upland), and UPL (obligate upland). If you have suggestions for the Wetland Indicator Status Rating, please contact: [Enable JavaScript to view protected content]
FACU: Facultative Upland
Occasionally is a hydrophyte but usually occurs in uplands (non-wetlands).
Other information
Environmental Weed (2024)
This plant is named in a list of 386 environmental weeds in New Zealand 2024 prepared by DOC. 759 candidate species were considered for inclusion on this new comprehensive list of environmental weeds in New Zealand. The species considered were drawn from published lists of weed species, lists of plants that must be reported or managed by law if observed, existing national and regional programmes and agreements for pest management, and species already managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC). Candidate species were then assessed to see if they were fully naturalised and whether they have more than minor impacts in natural ecosystems. Read the full report here.
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
LOLPER