Bromus tectorum, known as downy brome, drooping brome, [1] or cheatgrass, is a winter annual grass native to Europe, southwestern Asia, and northern Africa, but has become invasive in many other areas.

Apr 25, 2014 · Both brome species (Smooth and Downy) can act as weeds in high quality turf areas. Smooth brome has many desirable characteristics to function as a useful turfgrass species; however, its poor density limits the use to low-maintenance areas.

Cheatgrass, also known as downy brome, is an invasive annual that dominates more than 100 million acres of the Great Basin in the western U.S. Germinating each winter, cheatgrass grows furiously in spring and dies in early summer, leaving the range carpeted in golden dry tinder.

Downy brome is a palatable grass before the seed heads emerge but becomes unpalatable with maturity. Mature downy brome can cause injury to livestock (lump jaw in cattle) by causing infection in the eyes or mouth.

Jun 22, 2024 · Downy brome is a winter annual (sometimes a summer annual) reproducing by seed. Germination typically occurs during late summer or fall, with overwintering plants resuming growth in the spring.

Downy brome can be found as an agricultural weed in irrigated and non-irrigated cool season crops such as alfalfa and cereals. Origin: All species are native to Eurasia. Impact: These bromes suppress other grasses in rangeland, can infest agricultural fields, and have sharp florets that can injure grazing animals.

Downy brome or Cheatgrass is an annual or winter annual, native to the Mediterranean region. Cheatgrass ranges in height from 2 to 36 inches. Each plant contains multiple stems that are erect in nature. The inflorescences are born and the end of the stems, and are multi-branched. They appear in a slender, dense, and usually drooping manner.

Seeds are linear or lance-shaped, yellow to red-brown, and grooved. Similar species: Field brome (Bromus arvensis L.), which is also called Japanese brome, is best distinguished from downy brome by the outer chaff of the spikelets, which has three ridges rather than one.

Downy brome is primarily a weed of landscapes, fencerows, pastures, hay fields, and occasionally winter small grain crops. Downy brome is found throughout the United States except in the extreme southeast. The leaves are rolled in the shoot and are densely soft hairy on both surfaces.

Bromegrasses consist of a large group of species including both perennial and annual grasses. Some are valuable as forage and others are important weeds. The photos here show Bromus hordeaceous, soft brome, also called soft chess and ripgut brome, B. diandrus.