Precipitation and Objectives

Hybrid Bromegrass: Used for pasture, hay, and stockpiled grazing. There may be some potential for use in silvopasture and rehabilitation settings.

Smooth Bromegrass: Most commonly grown as grass for hay. Some use in pastures but regrowth after grazing is poor. Used for roadside site rehabilitation and erosion control, and for forage in forest land grazing contexts but increasingly being avoided in many areas because of its invasive nature.

Creeping Red Fescue: Turf grass, pasture, reclamation, as stockpiled forage.

Tall Fescue: Used originally as pasture forage, especially in sub-humid irrigated areas. Also used for erosion control and more recently being grown as turf seed.

Redtop: Introduced initially for use in lawns and turf grasses. Used for erosion control in riparian areas and wetlands, and rehabilitation of disturbed sites with high acidity or heavy metal contamination. There has been some use for pasture and hay in higher elevation wet meadows in western states.

Perennial Ryegrass: Seed size can be quite variable between and within diploid and tetraploid types. Perennial ryegrass grows quickly so it is well suited for use in pastures, usually under short-term intensively managed grazing and irrigated pastures. It is used for dairy silage, for turf (depending on variety), and for conservation purposes.

Crested Wheatgrass: Most often used for early spring pasture and occasionally for hay. Crested wheatgrass was used extensively in historic rehabilitation efforts on western rangelands.

Tall Wheatgrass: Tall wheatgrass is used primarily for rehabilitation of saline areas, and is sometimes used for hay and forage. It has some value as nesting cover and food supply for birds.

Alfalfa: Alfalfa is used for hay and pasture, and as stockpiled forage (although quality is limited by frost). It also is used for wildlife habitat and forage and has had some use in post-wildfire and range rehabilitation.

Red Clover: Red clover is used for grazing, stockpiled forage, hay, silage, and green manure. It is palatable but can cause bloat. However, the risk of bloat is lower than for alfalfa. It is used for soil improvement in site rehabilitation in a variety of contexts.

Sainfoin: Used for pasture, hay, stockpiled forage. Also used in site rehabilitation and reclamation.

Cicer Milkvetch: Used mainly for pasture and stockpiling, or extending grazing season. It has been used for erosion control and soil stabilization.

Hairy Vetch: Can be used for hay or pasture, but consumption of seed can be poisonous to livestock. Hairy vetch is especially known for erosion control, bank stabilization, winter cover crop, and soil conditioning. It can be asuitable plant in organic and no-till pasture and cropping systems.

Big Bluegrass: Big bluegrass is used for forage, dryland hay, and upland wildlife habitat. Upland game birds eat the seeds and use big bluegrass for nesting areas. It is also an important species for reseeding rangelands, stabilizing critical areas, reclaiming mine soils, and revegetating disturbed areas in aspen and conifer forests. Collections in Alaska have been used for erosion control, reclamation, and native plant community restoration.

Fringe Bromegrass: Used for reclamation and erosion control. Also excellent forage for both ungulate wildlife and livestock and holds its nutritional value throughout the growing season, so can be used to extend the grazing period.

Idaho Fescue: Idaho fescue is an important forage for livestock and native ungulates. It has some potential for rehabilitation and erosion control.

Rough Fescue: Important forage for both wildlife and livestock. Used in grassland restoration and site rehabilitation.

Junegrass: Recommended in many native seed mixes and used in reclamation and rehabilitation as a pioneer or early successional species on disturbed sites.

Bluejoint Reedgrass: Forage, revegetation, erosion control, and wildlife habitat.

Slender Wheatgrass: Slender wheatgrass is utilized by both livestock and wildlife. Under optimal conditions it may also be harvested for hay. It has been used widely in both restoration and reclamation situations, in part because seedling vigour is better than other native grasses. It is quick to germinate, so that it also has some application for erosion control. It has been used for post- wildfire restoration, mine reclamation, and seeding of roadside right-of-ways and other disturbances.

Blue Wildrye: Native revegetation of disturbed or burned areas, erosion control for steep slopes. Wildlife habitat for mammals and birds.

Fuzzy-spiked Wildrye (Hairy Wildrye): An important native component to open forests, disturbed sites, and rangelands. It provides important winter forage for mountain sheep in the northern region.

Creamy Peavine: Excellent forage value for wapiti (elk) and cattle. Some use in reclamation and restoration.