Stipa avenacea
Encyclopedia
Stipa avenacea also termed as Piptochaetium avenaceum, and commonly called black oat grass or blackseed needle grass, is a perennial herb native to North America
that reaches up to three feet in height. A member of the family Poaceae
, its leaves are observed to be long and elongate and easily recognizable when flowering or fruiting.
s are very thin and thus can create effects of spikelets that appear to be floating in mid air. It also consists of awns, which are hairlike projections containing multicellular organisms that obtain nutrients through photosynthesis. The awns can twist and un-twist in circumstances depending on the humidity and temperature of the area, which is required for them in order to thrive within soil. They also protrude from individual flowers in the flowering clusters, which tend to develop between late spring and early summer (normally April - June). Panicles also exist within this species where it rises above the plant's rolled and thread-like leaves. It contains slender open branches, a few narrow scales and spikelets that consist of one flower. The ripened flowering heads within the spikelet remain on the grass usually until autumn, in which the awns tend to bend and twist, spreading widely from the scales. Also the palea (bract like organs found within species of grass) tends to be long and blackish, in which the upper part consists of bent and twisted awns.
, though it was claimed to be found in certain regions of the Midwest as well. Though it was documented that the Black Oat can be mostly found in Alabama
and Pennsylvania
, it was also claimed to be seen in the dry woods of Rhode Island
and Florida
, as well as in the western region of Ontario
, Canada
, and Wisconsin
. There also were documented findings within North
and South Carolina
and Georgia
, and was recorded to exist in several locations of Ohio and its surrounding states. Within the Midwest, findings were claimed near the border areas of Michigan
and Illinois
.
, and shrinkage and swelling of the soil that is caused by the variation of temperature and humidity. The deformation of animal skin was believed to be caused by the wide dispersal of foxtail over large distances, posing as a threat to animals if it enters the nostrils or ears of the animal, leading to infection and at times, death. The swelling and shrinkage of soil is due to the burial of the seed and awn into the soil, making it a important item for when germination begins. Along with the deformation of certain environments by net transport, lengths of certain grasses can also vary. According to the study, Stipa avenacea, along with other Stipa species, appeared reveal a kind of kinking and coiling of their awns, causing different variations of the length of the awns. This would eventually yield linear strains of up to 20%. Due to this, it was observed that strain variations were possibly rectified in the direction of the grass tips. From this, researchers were able to consider a combination of time periodic hydroscopic of the grass awn and the surrounding substrates by deriving certain mathematical and biological equations that determined the scaling relation of the mean propulsion velocity of the awn. The end result they found was that the seed and displacement of each cycle shows a linear scale of grass length, revealing that the longer the length of the grass, the more easier it is able to rectify larger fluctuations in proportion with the length of the grass. This would thus conclude that long grass awns would serve more efficiently as fluctuation amplifiers. It was recently claimed by the Pennsylvania Biological Survey and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources that the Black Oat Grass is at risk to become an endangered plant species, even though it is found in several locations within Pennsylvania and its surrounding states.
, which can be used to fight against certain cancers by preventing the formation of tumors. The seeds also provide vitamin and minerals and can lower caffeine
intake by serving as a coffee substitute when roasted. They also are used as treatment for dry skin, itchyness, and eczema
.
, in which they are grown after a crop has been cut so that soil can be replenished, and is thus plowed back into the garden rather than being harvested. It is commonly said that oat grass is a good choice to use as a cover crop because when they die during the winter time, the residue will be much easier to handle when working with the soil, while preparing for planting season.
Arrhenatherum
List of Poaceae Genera
Arrhenatherum elatius
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
that reaches up to three feet in height. A member of the family Poaceae
Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...
, its leaves are observed to be long and elongate and easily recognizable when flowering or fruiting.
Description
The Black Oat Grass consists of fine leaf texture that appear to be bristle-like. The seeds are formed as sharp needles. It can be identified by its open inflorescences, which are thin and usually cannot be seen from a distance. The branches within these inflorescenceInflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s are very thin and thus can create effects of spikelets that appear to be floating in mid air. It also consists of awns, which are hairlike projections containing multicellular organisms that obtain nutrients through photosynthesis. The awns can twist and un-twist in circumstances depending on the humidity and temperature of the area, which is required for them in order to thrive within soil. They also protrude from individual flowers in the flowering clusters, which tend to develop between late spring and early summer (normally April - June). Panicles also exist within this species where it rises above the plant's rolled and thread-like leaves. It contains slender open branches, a few narrow scales and spikelets that consist of one flower. The ripened flowering heads within the spikelet remain on the grass usually until autumn, in which the awns tend to bend and twist, spreading widely from the scales. Also the palea (bract like organs found within species of grass) tends to be long and blackish, in which the upper part consists of bent and twisted awns.
Habitat and Range
Stipa avenacea is commonly found in the United States. Black Oat Grass have several types of habitat and have several ranges. It can be found in decidious hardwood hammocks, thickets, and dry woods, as well as upland woodlands and forests where it is found within the dry ground in woods, especially oak woods and dry openings. It can also been found within savannahs, rocky slopes, outcrops and clearings. This specific type of grass is mostly found with the southern and eastern parts of the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, though it was claimed to be found in certain regions of the Midwest as well. Though it was documented that the Black Oat can be mostly found in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, it was also claimed to be seen in the dry woods of Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, as well as in the western region of Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. There also were documented findings within North
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
and South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
and Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, and was recorded to exist in several locations of Ohio and its surrounding states. Within the Midwest, findings were claimed near the border areas of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
and Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
Experimental studies and Significance
Many species of grasses are commonly used for studying botanical ratchets, which are referred to to surfaces that are common in plant awns and grasses and are usually used for seed dispersion and burial. One specific aspect in which Stipa avenacea is used for is the transport of plant awns is through the net transport in deforming environments. With the use of Stipa avenacea, researchers were able to conclude several types of deformation within the use of this plant. One kind of deformation is the deformation of the skins of animals, specifically with the dispersal of the foxtailFoxtail
-Plants:*Foxtail , the dry spikelet or spikelet cluster of some grasses** Alopecurus ** Bromus madritensis ** Hordeum jubatum...
, and shrinkage and swelling of the soil that is caused by the variation of temperature and humidity. The deformation of animal skin was believed to be caused by the wide dispersal of foxtail over large distances, posing as a threat to animals if it enters the nostrils or ears of the animal, leading to infection and at times, death. The swelling and shrinkage of soil is due to the burial of the seed and awn into the soil, making it a important item for when germination begins. Along with the deformation of certain environments by net transport, lengths of certain grasses can also vary. According to the study, Stipa avenacea, along with other Stipa species, appeared reveal a kind of kinking and coiling of their awns, causing different variations of the length of the awns. This would eventually yield linear strains of up to 20%. Due to this, it was observed that strain variations were possibly rectified in the direction of the grass tips. From this, researchers were able to consider a combination of time periodic hydroscopic of the grass awn and the surrounding substrates by deriving certain mathematical and biological equations that determined the scaling relation of the mean propulsion velocity of the awn. The end result they found was that the seed and displacement of each cycle shows a linear scale of grass length, revealing that the longer the length of the grass, the more easier it is able to rectify larger fluctuations in proportion with the length of the grass. This would thus conclude that long grass awns would serve more efficiently as fluctuation amplifiers. It was recently claimed by the Pennsylvania Biological Survey and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources that the Black Oat Grass is at risk to become an endangered plant species, even though it is found in several locations within Pennsylvania and its surrounding states.
Useful Purposes
Black oat grass basically has the same purposes and uses as any other type of oat grass that exists. Like many, they can be grown as cereal grains for commercial purposes, be used as a type of natural medicine, and also can be used as a food source that consist of high fibers and can lower high cholesterol. It can also be beneficial for gardening and soil care as well.Health
Oat grass is known to be a valuable food source. A study done by an organization called "Plants for a Future" concluded that the fact they can be grown as oats proves that person who consumes any type of product made from oats (such as oatmeal) consumes an average of 17% protein. Seeds in oat grass consist of a compound called beta-SitosterolBeta-sitosterol
β-Sitosterol is one of several phytosterols with chemical structures similar to that of cholesterol. Sitosterols are white, waxy powders with a characteristic odor...
, which can be used to fight against certain cancers by preventing the formation of tumors. The seeds also provide vitamin and minerals and can lower caffeine
Caffeine
Caffeine is a bitter, white crystalline xanthine alkaloid that acts as a stimulant drug. Caffeine is found in varying quantities in the seeds, leaves, and fruit of some plants, where it acts as a natural pesticide that paralyzes and kills certain insects feeding on the plants...
intake by serving as a coffee substitute when roasted. They also are used as treatment for dry skin, itchyness, and eczema
Eczema
Eczema is a form of dermatitis, or inflammation of the epidermis . In England, an estimated 5.7 million or about one in every nine people have been diagnosed with the disease by a clinician at some point in their lives.The term eczema is broadly applied to a range of persistent skin conditions...
.
Gardening
With the use of Oat grass, perennial grasses with feathery plumes can be created and be used as floral arrangements displayed in a variety of colors. It is hardy to USDA zone 2 (see Hardiness Zone for reference), normally allowing them to flower around the summer time. Oat grass can also produce oats that are drought-tolerant, as long as drainage is in good condition and the plants themselves receive plenty of sunlight, and thus are tolerable to soil. Also, sewing oat grass into the ground can serve as a net to cover seeds and prevent it from any predators (such as birds).Soil
Oat grass also can be used to prevent soil erosion when planted along vulnerable areas (such as stream banks) where it can form a dense mat through water flow. They can also be used as a cover cropCover crop
Cover crops are crops planted primarily to manage soil fertility, soil quality, water, weeds, pests, diseases, biodiversity and wildlife in agroecosystems , ecological systems managed and largely shaped by humans across a range of intensities to produce food, feed, or fiber.Cover crops are of...
, in which they are grown after a crop has been cut so that soil can be replenished, and is thus plowed back into the garden rather than being harvested. It is commonly said that oat grass is a good choice to use as a cover crop because when they die during the winter time, the residue will be much easier to handle when working with the soil, while preparing for planting season.
See also
StipaStipa
This article is about a type of grass.For Speech Transmission Index for Public Address Systems, see Speech transmission index.For the Italian aircraft designer, see Luigi Stipa...
Arrhenatherum
Arrhenatherum
Arrhenatherum, commonly called Oat-grass or Button-grass, is a genus with seven species and subspecies from the grass family Poaceae. It grows in Europe and the Mediterranean. Wild forms resemble Wild Oat or Fescue...
List of Poaceae Genera
Arrhenatherum elatius