Common name: Italian Ryegrass
Lolium multiflorum Lam. APNI* 
Description: Caespitose annual or short-lived perennial to 1 m high; sheaths tight around culm.
Leaves with sheath ribbed, glabrous; ligule membranous, 1–2 mm long, obtuse; auricles to 3 mm long, glabrous; blade flat, rolled or folded when dry, to 0.5 cm wide, ribbed, glabrous.
Inflorescence spicate, 10–23 cm long, to 1.5 cm wide; rachis thickened, scabrous. Spikelets 8–15 mm long, to 4 mm wide, sessile, partly in concavities of the rachis, florets 5–15. Lower glume only present on terminal spikelet; upper 3–14 mm long, 1–2 mm wide, subulate, thickened, ribbed. Lemmas 4–6 mm long, acute, 5-nerved, glabrous; awn subterminal, straight, 2–5 mm long. Palea as long as lemma, acute, glabrous, 2-keeled, keels scabrous.
Flowering: spring.
Distribution and occurrence: Planted pasture species and widespread weed of crops and roadsides. Native of Medit. region.
NSW subdivisions: *NC, *CC, *SC, *NT, *CT, *NWS, *CWS, *SWS
Other Australian states: *Qld *Vic. *Tas. *W.A. *S.A.
Text by S. W. L. Jacobs & K. L. McClay
Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 4 (1993)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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