Italian ryegrass (Annual ryegrass)

Description

Annual or perennial plant, very robust, rather big, hairless, cespitous. Stems erect, 20 - 100 cm high. Blade rolled when young, large (up to 10 mm), long (6 - 25 cm), flexible, pale green, shiny on the lower side, less than 16 well marked veins on the upper side (more than 16 veins in Festuca pratensis). Sheaths of the lower leaves purple-red. Ligule quite short, membranous. Auricles long, well developped.