Invasive Species Council of Manitoba: Downy Brome

Downy Brome

Downy Brome Bromus tectorum

Downy Brome (Bromus tectorum)is an aggressive, grassy weed. Other common names for Downy Brome are Cheatgrass, Cheat, Downy Chess and Downy Cheat. Its presence in the southwest and its ability to infect many habitats makes it a threat to winter and spring cereals, dryland hayfields, pastures and rangelands.

Identification

Downy Brome is an annual grass that typically germinates in the fall and overwinters as a small seedling. Plants resume growth early in the spring. Downy Brome is easily distinguished from other grasses in the seedling stage by its very hairy leaves. Downy Brome can be confused with fall rye in the seedling stage as both plants are purplish in colour, but fall rye has small hooks, called auricles that encircle the stem at the base of the leaf blade. Downy Brome does not have auricles.

Control and Containment

Since Downy Brome reproduces only by seed, successful control can be achieved by preventing seed production and exhausting the soil seed bank. Seed spread is primarily through contaminated grain, hay, straw, manure and farm machinery. The long awn attached to the seed aids in sticking to animal fur, so seed is also likely spread by birds, antelope, deer and small rodents.

In cultivated land the best strategy is to prevent the initial infestation. This can be achieved by ensuring that any seed purchased is certified free of Downy Brome and by thoroughly cleaning equipment, particularly swathers and combines. Rotation to a spring cereal with at least one cultivation prior to seeding can be an effective control strategy. The spring seedbed preparation should kill any downy brome that germinated either in the previous fall or early spring. If a winter cereal is grown exclusively, then Downy Brome must be controlled in the fallow year using either cultivation or herbicides.

On rangelands and pastures farmers should be diligent and remove Downy Brome plants when the infestations are small because no herbicides are registered for control on rangelands. Preventing infestations is probably the best method for excluding Downy Brome from grazing and hayland.

Resources

2011 Rural Municipality Distribution Map

2010 Rural Municipality Distribution Map

Downy Brome MWSAÂ 2009 Survey Map

Alberta Invasive Plant Council Fact Sheet

This information provided courtesy of the Government of Saskatchewan.

Back to Terrestrial Invasive Species List

Invasive Species Council of Manitoba

Downy Brome

Resources

CURRENT NEWS: