Practical
Plants

Festuca ovina

Sheep's Fescue

a perennial member of the Festuca genus in the family Gramineae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Family
Gramineae
Genus
Festuca
Life cycle
perennial
Height
0.25 m
Fertility
Wind
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Wind

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed[2][3]. No further details but the seed is rather small and would be very fiddly to utilise[K].

Plant part
Seed

Environment

Range
Most of Europe, including Britain.
Habitat
Poor, well-drained shallow soils from low to high elevations[1].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 5+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline, very alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerances
drought
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
tolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow spring in situ[4]. The seed usually germinates within three weeks. Division in spring[4]. Very easy, the clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Prefers a light well-drained soil in full sun[5]. A drought resistant plant once established[1], it succeeds on shallow chalky soils[6]. Tolerant of constant cutting, this plant is often grown in lawns[1].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  2. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

    ↩

  3. Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.

    ↩

  4. Grounds. R. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm 1989-00-00 ISBN 0-7470-1219-9

    ↩1↩2

  5. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩

  6. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

    ↩

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