Agrostis tenuis

Agrostis tenuisAgrostis tenuisBentgrassIntroductionAgrostis is a genus that includes about200 species worldwide. The maindistribution is in the cooler areas oftemperate zones, especially in thenorthern hemisphere. At least 32species and 10 varieties of the genusare reported in China. Most of themare forage favored by livestock suchas cattle and horses [180] .Species of Agrostis in ChinaScientific NameScientific NameA. arisan-montana Ohwi. A. micrantha Steud.A. canina L. A. morrisonensis HayataA. clavata Trin. A. myriantha Hook. f.A. contracta Y. C. Tong ex Y. C. Yang A. perlaxa PilgerA. divaricatissima Mez A. pubicallis Keng ex Y. C. YangA. eriolepis Keng ex Y. C. Yang A. rupestris All.A. flaccida Hack. A. schneideri PilgerA. fukuyamae Ohwi A. sibirica V. Petr.A. gigantea Roth A. sinkiangensis Y. C. YangA. hookeriana Clarke ex Hook. f. A. subaristata Aitch. et Hemsl.A. hugoniana Rendle A. tenuis Sibth.A. inaequiglumis Griseb. A. transmorrisonensis HayataA. limprichtii Pilger A. trinii Turcz.A. matsumurae Hack. ex Honda A. turkestanica Drob.A. megathyrsa KengThe above list of species is recorded in Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae publishedin the late 1980s [180] . Recently, some new taxa, including three species (A. pilosulaTrin., A. lushuiensis B. S. Sun et Y. C. Wang, and A. kunmingensis B. S. Sun et Y.C. Wang) and two varieties (A. pilosula Trin. var. wallichiana [Steud.] Bor. and A.myriantha Hook. f. var yangbiensis B. S. Sun et Y. V. Wang), were identified [148][147] .TaxonomyFamily: Gramineae (Poaceae)Genus: Agrostis Linn.DescriptionAgrostis tenuis is a perennial grassthat can reach 20-25 cm in height.Rhizomes are short; slender culmsabout 1 mm in diameter, with threeto four nodes clump at the base, andthen become erect. Leaf sheathsare smooth and often taller thanthe internode. Ligules are dry andmembranous, about 1 mm long, witha truncate apex. The thick leavesare flat and narrow, 2-4 cm long and1-1.5 mm wide, acuminate apicallyand often rolled in dry conditions.Nearly elliptic in shape, panicles arespreading with two to five branchesat each node. Spikelets are purplebrown,elliptical to lanceolate, 1.5-1.7cm long and coarse on the surface,with awnless lemma. Flowers appearin August, with golden anthers 0.8-1mm long [180] .DistributionA. tenuis occurs in and Shanxiprovinces [75][180] , and probably inHenan, Ningxia [116] , Inner Mongolia [121] ,and Xinjiang provinces [21] .HabitatIn China, bentgrass commonly growsin wetlands, [75] especially in moistgrasslands [180] at elevations of 1000- 1500 m. In some areas of Xinjiang,the grass is found in oases, meadows,and cultivated areas at elevations of800 - 2300 m [21] .Economic ImportanceBentgrass is grown as a lawn grass insome areas.Related SpeciesAgrostis sibirica V. Petr. can bedifferentiated from A. tenuis byits yellowish green spikelets andlanceolate leaves; A. sibirica occursin roadside wetlands at an elevation of400 m in the provinces of northeasternChina [180] .Natural Enemies of AgrostisThirteen fungi, and four insect speciesare recorded as associated with plants8 — Invasive Plants of Asian Origin Established in the US and Their Natural Enemies

Agrostis tenuisof the genus Agrostis in China. Twofungi, Puccinia agrostidicola Tai andPuccinia recondita Rob. et Desm. f.sp. agrostidis D. M. Hend. may havenarrow host ranges. All four insectspecies are polyphagous.FungiPhylum Family Species H. R. Ref.Ascomycota Clavicipitaceae Claviceps purpurea (Fr.) Tul. po 23BasidiomycotaPucciniaceaePuccinia agropyricola Hiratsuka po 149Puccinia agrostidicola F.L. TaiPuccinia brachypodii var. poae-nemoralis (G.H.Otth) Cummins & H.C. GreenePuccinia coronata Cordao 23o 149po 23po 149po 23po 149Puccinia coronata var. himalensis Barclay po 149Puccinia graminis Pers. po 149Puccinia pygmaea Erikss. po 149Puccinia rangiferina S. Itopo 23po 149Puccinia recondita f.sp. agrostidis D.M. Hend. o 23Puccinia recondita Dietel & Holw. po 149Ustilaginaceae Ustilago striiformis (Westend.) Niessl po 54Oomycota Pythiaceae Pythium mamillatum Meurs po 188ArthropodsOrder Family Species H. R. Ref.Hemiptera Piesmatidae Piesma quadratum (Fieber) po 106HomopteraPseudococcidaeSaccharicoccus penium Williams po 152Trionymus thulensis Green po 152Lepidoptera Noctuidae Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel) po 190††Recorded as Agrotis ypsilon (Rottemberg)Invasive Plants of Asian Origin Established in the US and Their Natural Enemies — 9