Seeds on stem. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: Murray Fagg, Scottsdale Bush Heritage Reserve near Bredbo, NSW

Seed heads. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: G Manley, ACT

Seed heads. Photo: John Tann, Capertee Valley, NSW

Seed heads. Photo: Russell Best, Macedon Ranges, Vic

Common Name

Common Wheatgrass, Rough Wheatgrass

Family

Poaceae

Notes

Perennial grass to 1.2m tall.  Leaves mostly basal, with a sheath at the base.  Ligule a membrane without a fringe of hairs. Leaves 5-40cm long, 2-5mm wide, flat, rolled inwards, or threadlike; upper surface glaucous and hairless, or rough, lower surface hairless or hairy; with rough edges, and tapering to a fine point. Spikelets 15-35mm long, excluding the awns. Seeds with 1 long awn. Mature seed groups cylindrical to spreading.   Anthosachne scabra in SA.

Differs from Elymus plurinervis in that the awns on the seeds are straight to curved backwards when dry.

Description and photo of seeding plant (as Agropyron scabrum) in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales pages 51-52

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Elymus~scaber

ausgrass2 description, photos, and line drawings (as Anthosachne scabra):  http://ausgrass2.myspecies.info/content/anthosachne-scabra