Fineleaf sheep fescue
Prepared by Jennifer L. D’Appollonio, Assistant Scientist, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469. Updated February 2018.
Scientific name: Festuca filiformis Pourret
Common name(s): fineleaf sheep fescue, fine-leaved sheep fescue, hair fescue
Link(s): USDA PLANTS Profile, Go Botany
Images: (to see enlargements [PC]: click on image, then right click and choose “view image”)
-
- early June, blueberries just emerged
-
- growth overtops emerged blueberries in prune field, early June
-
- bunch growth habit
-
- light plants
-
- dark plants
-
- late June
-
- late July
-
- leaf blades are very fine
-
- seedheads, late July
Description:
– perennial
-leaf blade 0.2–0.6 mm in width
– at least one population in ME is known to be herbicide-resistant
-may be confused with F. ovina; see left sidebar on Go Botany webpage
Habitat:
-disturbed sites
-grasslands
-meadows and fields
-woodlands
Natural History:
-native to Europe
-introduced as a turf grass
Acknowledgement(s):
Go Botany. “Festuca Filiformis Pourret.” Festuca Filiformis (Fine-Leaved Sheep Fescue): Go Botany, 2021, gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/festuca/filiformis/.
Eric T. Doucette, Ph.D. – Assistant Professor of Biology, MA College of Liberal Arts, North Adams, MA (updated Feb 2018)