Elymus glaucus

A perennial grass that grows in small, but tall tufts, reaching 3 to 5 feet tall. Typically found in open meadows, fields, ditch banks, road cuts, etc. Blue wildrye can be used ornamentally for its gray foliage, or to hold slopes for erosion control. Short-lived and rather weedy, it naturally grows with oaks and conifers and is often used in re-vegetation. FYI, the name elumos is from the Greek term for a "grain." Native to California and is also found elsewhere in North America and beyond. Good for stream bank restoration, meadow and swale seeding. It is also excellent for reseeding burned areas in oak woodland or forest. Also provides excellent wildlife habitat for mammals, birds, and waterfowl. Seeds made into a porridge and eaten by the Ohlone people. Also used by the Karok people as a medicine to settle quarrels between families or individuals. Found in open woods, prairie, thickets, and moist or dry hillsides. Communitites located in Yellow Pine Forest, Red Fir Forest, Lodgepole Forest, Subalpine Forest, Foothill Woodland, Chaparral, Valley Grassland Between 0 and 8202 feet.