SMOOTH MEADOW-GRASS

'Smooth Meadow-grass' or 'Kentucky bluegrass' (''Poa pratensis'') is a species of grass native to Europe, Asia, northern Africa and North America.

It is a herbaceous perennial plant, growing to 30-70 cm tall, occasionally 90 cm. The leaves are narrow-linear, up to 20 cm long and 3-5 mm broad, smooth or slightly roughened, with a rounded to truncate ligule 1-2 mm long. The flower panicle is 10-20 cm long, conic, with the basal whorls of 3-5 branchlets; the spikelets are oval, green, 3-6 mm long, with 2-5 flowers.
''Poa pratensis'' is the type species of the grass family Poaceae.
There are two ill-defined subspecies:

★ ''Poa pratensis'' subsp. ''pratensis'' - temperate regions

★ ''Poa pratensis'' subsp. ''colpodea'' - arctic

Contents

Cultivation and uses

Hybridization with ''Poa arachnifera''

References

Cultivation and uses

Smooth Meadow-grass is a very important meadow plant, used extensively by grazing livestock like cattle and sheep. It has also become one of the most popular turf grasses in North America, where it has been renamed "Kentucky Bluegrass".

Hybridization with ''Poa arachnifera''

During the 1990s, botanists began experimenting with producing hybrids of ''P. pratensis'' and ''Poa arachnifera'' (Texas bluegrass), with the goal of creating a drought-resistant lawn grass.

References

★ Flora Europaea: ''Poa pratensis''

★ European ''Poa'' Database