Elymus riparius Riverbank Wild Rye
General
A tall cool season bunch grass sometimes used for erosion control. Most commonly found in moist soils, and on stream banks and shore edges.
Plant Description
A tall grass growing 3-5'. Hollow, slightly tapered stems grow in tufts. Long, linear leaves grow sparse and opposite on the stem. A spiky green inflorescence 3-8'' long "blooms" during summer.
Height (ft)
3-5'
Soil moisture
Moist
Soil types
Loam, Clay-Loam
Wetland indicator
FACW
Shade tolerance
Tolerant, Full Sun to Full Shade
Bloom color
Yellow/Green
Bloom period
Summer
Drought tolerance
Low
Salinity tolerance
None
Distribution
Common in the Northeast from Maine to Pennsylvania, then along the Appalachians until Tennessee. Sparse populations west from the Appalachian Mountains to the edge of the Great Plains.
Additional information
Brown, Lauren. Grasses: An Identification Guide. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York City, 1979. LINK
Fassett, Norman C. A Manual of Aquatic Plants, First Edition. McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., New York and London, 1940. LINK
Garbisch, Edgar W., and McIninch, Suzanne M. Propagation of Wetland Plants: Herbaceous Plants, Shrubs and Trees. Environmental Concern, Inc. 2003. LINK
Harris, James G., and Harris, Melinda Woolf. Plant Identification Terminology: An Illustrated Glossary, Second Edition. Spring Lake Publishing, Spring Lake, Utah. 2011. LINK
Hitchcock, A.S., and Chase, Agnes. Manual of the Grasses of the United States, Second Edition, Volume I. Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1971. LINK
Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2015. North American Plant Atlas. (http://bonap.net/napa). Chapel Hill, N.C. [maps generated from Kartesz, J.T. 2015. Floristic Synthesis of North America, Version 1.0. Biota of North America Program (BONAP). (in press) LINK
McKenny, Margaret and Peterson, Roger Tory. A Field Guide to Wildflowers of Northeastern and North-central North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1968. LINK
Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb's Wildflower Guide. Laurence Newcomb, Mexico. 1977. LINK
USDA, NRCS. 2021. PLANTS Database (https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov/, 08/20/2021). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA. LINK
https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/grasses/plants/rb_rye.html
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=elri
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/143495-Elymus-riparius/browse_photos
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elymus_(plant)
