Relatives

Aegilops neglecta Req. ex Bertol. - Neglected goatgrass, neglected wild-wheat.

Taxonomic position.

Family Poaceae Barnh., genus Aegilops L.

Synonymy.

Aegilops ovata L. emend. Roth, A. triaristata auct. non Willd., Triticum ovatum (L.) Raspail

Morphology and biology.

Herbaceous annual 25-35 cm tall. Leaves linear and flat. Spikes broadly lanceolate, sharply narrowed toward the apex, short, 2.3-3.3 cm long (exclusive of awns), with 3-4 spikelets (1-2 uppermost spikelets often underdeveloped). At the spike base 2-3 rudimentary spikelets. Spikelets usually glabrous, but scabrous, rarely having short hairs. Glumes of fertile spikelets oblong-ovate, both with 3 awns or one with 2, the other with 3 awns. Awns 2.5-5.5 cm long.
Wind and self-pollinated plant. Autochore. Propagates by seeds. Flowers in May, fruits in June. 2n=28, 42.

Distribution.

Mediterranean, Crimea (southern: near Laspi and Sudak, in the rest area as an alien); Caucasus (Daghestan, West and East Transcaucasia); Middle Asia (West Kopetdagh); Asia Minor, Iran. Alien in other non-tropical countries.

Ecology.

Drought resistant. Occurs on fry stony and detrite slopes, shingles, on sands. In semi-desert foothills and mountains to the lower montane zone, up to 1200 m s.m.

Use and economic value.

Forage. Moderately susceptible to brown rust.

References:

Brezhnev DD, Korovina ON. 1981. Wild relatives of cultivated plants in the flora of the USSR. Leningrad: Kolos. 375 p. (In Russian).
Zhukovsky PM. 1928. Critical taxonomic survey of Aegilops L. species. Bulletin on Applied Botany, Genetics and Plant Breeding. 18(1): 417-609. (In Russian).
Tzvelev NN. 1976. Grasses of the Soviet Union. Leningrad: Nauka. 788 p. (In Russian).

© I.G. Chukhina