Winterhardiness and Agronomic Performance of Wildryes (Elymus species) Compared With Other Grasses in Alaska, and Responses of Siberian Wildrye to Management Practices

Abstract

This report summarizes eight field experiments involving both native and introduced wildrye grasses (Elymus species) conducted over a span of several years at the University of Alaska’s Matanuska Research Farm (61.6oN) near Palmer in southcentral Alaska. Objectives were to (a) evaluate winterhardiness, persistence, forage yield, and other aspects of agronomic performance of numerous strains within several species of wildrye, (b) assess their potential for forage use or conservation plantings in Alaska, and (c) determine the effects on Siberian wildrye (E. sibiricus) of seeding-year management options (time of planting and time of harvest) on seeding-year forage production, subsequent winter survival, and on second-year forage production.