General Description
It is a perennial plant sometimes found in acidic ground, for example in the Portlethen Moss, Scotland and mountain pasture, throughout Europe (with the exception of some Mediterranean areas) and eastwards across much of Asia; it has also been introduced to North America .
It is classified under the British NVC community CG2, i.e. Festuca ovina - Avenula pratensis grassland, one of the calcicolous grassland communities.
It is sometimes used as a drought-tolerant lawn grass.
Sheep's fescue is a densely tufted perennial grass. Its greyish green leaves are short and bristle-like. The panicles are both slightly feathery and a bit one-sided. It flowers from May until June, and is wind pollinated.
- See also List of Lepidoptera that feed on grasses
This is one of the food plants for the caterpillars of several butterflies and moths, including the Gatekeeper and the Meadow Brown, the Small Heath, and the grass moth Agriphila inquinatella.
Sheep's fescue is a drought-resistant grass, commonly found on poor, well-drained mineral soil.
The great ability to adapt to poor soils is due to mycorrhizal fungi, that increase the water and nutrients absorption, and also are potential determinants of plant community structure. The symbiosis with fungi increases mineral, nitrogen and phospate absorption, thanks to fungal hyphas that expand deeply in the soil, and cover plant roots, increasing the exchange surface. Also, the symbiosis makes every plant interconnected with the other plants around, making possible the nutrient's exchange between plants far from each other.
More colourful garden varieties with blue-grey foliage are available.
Read more about this topic: Festuca Ovina
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