Species

Grass & Grass-Like Species

Plains Rough Fescue – Festuca hallii (Vasey) Piper

Tribe Poeae

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Origin & Status

Uncommon. Native to North America. Intact native grasslands in the moist mixedgrass prairie habitats are primary hosts of this species, which are sparse and in small pockets across the historic prairie/aspen parkland ecoregions of Western Canada.

Life Cycle

Perennial.

Synonyms & Other Names

Synonyms:

  • Dalucum hallii (Vasey) Lunell
  • Festuca altaica subsp. hallii (Vasey) V.L. Harms
  • Festuca scabrella subsp. hallii (Vasey) W.A. Weber

Other common names:

  • Prairie Wool (see Interesting Facts below for more information)
  • Hall’s Fescue

Key Characteristics to Note

Festuca hallii is a bunchgrass. It has short rhizomes and can grow between 8 and 26 inches (20 to 65 cm) tall.

Leaf blades are narrow and long-pointed. They grow 12 inches (30 cm) long and are 1 to 1.5 mm wide. At emergence, they are folded, but become in-rolled with maturity. They feel rough above and smooth below. Most leaves are bluish or grey-green; however, I’ve seen F. hallii leaves that are less grey or blue-green than expected. Comparatively, they are more green than Elymus smithii (Western Wheatgrass).

Each bunch will produce several panicles that range from 6 to 15 cm (2.3 to 6 inches) long. They can be open or contracted. The spikelets are 2- to 3-flowered with the third floret sterile. Glumes are nearly equal (6 to 7 and 7 to 8 mm long) and as long as the first lemma (lemmas 7 to 8 mm long). These glumes are hairless, somewhat shiny, often suffused with purple, and the lemmas are more roughened with tiny hairs and purplish. There are no awns present.

Where & When to Find This Plant

F. hallii is found primarily in the Parkland Ecoregion as well as northern parts of the Prairie Ecoregion. It is a dominant grassland climax species commonly found with Blue Grama (Bouteloua gracilis). It may be challenging to find this plant in areas except where it has been largely untouched by cattle grazing and agricultural activities, such as in provincial parks such as Big Knife Provincial Park or Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park. Plants have also been found in the Rumsey Ecological Reserve and Rumsey Natural Area blocks, both of which comprise the largest tract of intact prairie/aspen parkland native habitat in the world. These plants tend to prefer mesic soils, or soil with good drainage.

Its range extends from the mixed grasslands and northern edge of the Great Plains of Alberta and Saskatchewan eastward to Ontario, with some populations occuring in the southern interior of British Columbia. It is also found in through Montana south to New Mexico according to the USDA Fire Service database.

F. hallii typically blooms during the summer months, from June to August (as I’ve observed). However, some years have seen climate conditions that discourage this species from sending up inflorescences, and they will remain predominantly vegetative instead.

Interesting Facts

F. hallii is a valuable rangeland species for both wildlife and livestock because of its high palatability and ability to retain its nutritional value in the winter months. However, poor grazing management and agricultural activities threaten its existence. Some have estimated that less than two to five percent of intact F. hallii rangelands remain; these are small, isolated pockets in well-managed private or federally/provincially protected lands.

Other challenges include its high dependence on seed production for its ability to spread, making a species that is slow to establish and have “poor” reproductive ability when compared to more aggressive plants like Bromus inermis (Smooth Bromegrass). Seed production can also be quite variable, as in some years, F. hallii may produce very little to no seed, and in other years, conditions will be perfect for seed production, such as that pictured above.

Its tendenncy towards seed production is thought to have much to do with environmental stresses. Normally, plants that feel stressed by drought or excessive moisture or heat or cold will put their energy reserves into sexual reproduction (seed production) to ensure that the next generation will survive and come after them, should the parent plants die.

Festuca hallii also stands as the provincial grass of Alberta.

Ranchers call it “Prairie Wool” because of the many clumps of dead, brownish-grey plants that look similar to sheep’s wool it forms after snowmelt.

Prime Rangeland Fodder for Livestock & Wildlife

Rough fescue provides high quality forage for livestock and wildlife, especially for winter or early-spring grazing, however animals will graze this plant at any time of the year. As with all plants, young, fresh green leaves and stalks are the tastiest. Quality and “taste factor” (or palatability) declines as plants reach maturity. Rough fescue maintains its quality into winter, curing on the stem as it matures. This makes it a highly sought-after food source for grazing animals in the winter, late fall, or early spring when food resources are scarce.

However, old residue from previous years can reduce palatability. Studies have shown that elk favour winter grazing rough fescue if the old residue is cleared out by fire and grazing (primarily by cattle). Studies also have shown that heavy grazing, overgrazing, and grazing in early fall or summer will result in the decrease of rough fescue stands, allowing “increaser” species such as Parry’s Oat Grass (Danthonia parryi), Idaho fescue (Festuca idahoensis) and wheatgrasses (Family Triticeae) to take over. It thrives better under winter grazing. Hence, all rough fescue species are regarded as “decreasers” in discussions of rangeland management.

The migration patterns of the Plains Bison (Bison bison bison) have traced them to spend their summers in the southern Great Plains (mainly in the midwest and east of the Rockies of the United States) and then move north to Canada for their winter range. They are thought to have only gone as far north as the Aspen Parkland ecoregion and the prairie fescue grasslands and west to the foothills east of the Canadian Rockies (with some animals venturing into the mountain valleys as well).

Grazing by bison has been called “moderate” by scientists and biologists. Thus, bison probably utilized those plants as their primary nutrition source in the winter, along with sedges and other grasses. When it was time to migrate back south for their summer grazing (a few scattered groups of bison remained behind, similar to the animals of the Serengeti in Africa), these rough fescue plants were left behind and allowed to recover, grow, and reach maturity before the bison returned. Thus, it is believed that rough fescue may have evolved in conjunction with winter grazing habits of the old enormous bison herds.

However, another theory that scientists argue is that bison herds, because of their enormity, move with grass availability. When they run out of grass to eat because it gets heavily trampled and soiled with their manure, they head wherever their matriarchs or patriarchs go to wherever there is best grass. And, where they go depends on where the rains fell and when. Bison historically had a huge range that stretched up to the northern Great Plains and south almost to the Gulf of Mexico. If there was more grass up north, they would head up north and graze there before conditions may be more favourable for them to head back south. And, after they leave, often they won’t come back to that area for several years. Thus, arguably, rough fescue may not have evolved with the winter grazing habits of bison, but rather evolved with the infrequent yet hard grazing they recieved with bison following the rains and the best places to eat.

Suitability/Use for Reclamation

It is a common plant to use in a reclamation mix to establish disturbed sites in prairie grassland. However, its use is challenging due to high seed prices, short supply, and the long establishment period. Once this species successfully establishes itself, though, the persistence of this beautiful grass is quite admirable.

Sources for More Information

iNaturalist – Rough Fescue- https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/162950-Festuca-hallii

Lady Bird Johnson – Festuca hallii – https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=feha3

USDA Forest Service – Festuca altiaica, F. hallii, F. campestris – https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/graminoid/fesspp/all.html