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Canada Wild Rye
Elymus canadensis

Native perennial bunchgrass that is an early successional species (cool season) with erect or arching seedheads and flat, wide leaves. Canada wild rye is a short-lived, bunch, nurse crop that is suitable as a cover crop for restorations of floodplains and prairies or for rapid growth to bind exposed soil that later gives way to climax grasses as a successional species.

USDA symbol: ELCA4

General Information

Plant TypeGrass
Height4 feet
Light ExposureSun, Part Sun
Soil MoistureDry
Bloom ColorGreen, Brown
Canada Wild Rye (Canada Wild Rye<div><em class="small">Elymus canadensis</em></div>)
Photo credit: Minnesota Native Landscapes (Click to enlarge)

Tolerances

Flooding / Inundation ToleranceModerate
General Resilience6
Salt ToleranceMedium
Stress ToleranceDrought Tolerant, Fire Tolerant, General Disturbance

Pollinator Value: Medium

Bloom MonthsJuly to October
Larval Host ofMoths
Specific Pollinators HostedPeoria tetradella

Project Planning

Project TypeBoulevard, Erosion Control, Restoration, Shoreline Buffer, Upland Buffer
Coefficient of Conservatism4
Herbivore SensitivityMedium
LifespanPerennial
Rate of SpreadSlow
Soil StabilizationShallow
Vegetative ReproductionAbsent

Range

CountyAitkin, Anoka, Becker, Beltrami, Benton, Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carlton, Carver, Cass, Chippewa, Chisago, Clay, Clearwater, Cook, Cottonwood, Crow Wing, Dodge, Douglas, Faribault, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Grant, Hennepin, Houston, Hubbard, Isanti, Itasca, Jackson, Kanabec, Kandiyohi, Kittson, Koochiching, Lake, Lake of the Woods, Le Sueur, Lyon, Mahnomen, Marshall, Martin, McLeod, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Mower, Murray, Nicollet, Nobles, Norman, Olmsted, Otter Tail, Pennington, Pine, Pipestone, Polk, Pope, Ramsey, Red Lake, Redwood, Renville, Rice, Rock, Roseau, Scott, Sherburne, Sibley, St. Louis, Stearns, Steele, Stevens, Swift, Todd, Traverse, Wabasha, Wadena, Waseca, Washington, Wilkin, Winona, Wright, Yellow Medicine
EcoregionDriftless Area, Lake Agassiz Plain, North Central Hardwood Forests, Northern Glaciated Plains, Northern Lakes and Forests, Northern Minnesota Wetlands, Western Cornbelt Plains
Approximate Eco ProvinceEastern Broadleaf Forest, Laurentian Mixed Forest, Prairie Parkland, Tallgrass Aspen Parklands