Wall Barley - Hordeum murinum

Family: (Poaceae (Grass family)) ^[E-flora]
Other Names: wall barley (charming barley (ssp. leporinum); mouse barley; mouse barley (ssp. murinum); seagreen barley (ssp. glaucum))^[E-flora]

Habitat / Range
Dry roadsides and waste areas in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; rare to infrequent in SW BC (all ssp.) and SC BC (ssp. murinum); introduced from Europe. ^{[IFBC-E-flora]}

Origin Status: Exotic ^[E-flora]

Identification

Hordeum murinum is a ANNUAL growing to 0.5 m (1ft 8in). The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil. ^[PFAF]
General: Annual grass from fibrous roots; stems smooth, 20-40 (50) cm tall. ^{[IFBC-E-flora]}
Leaves: Sheaths open, smooth; blades usually sparsely stiff-hairy to soft-hairy, mostly 3-4 (5) mm wide; ear-shaped lobes well-developed at most leaf-bases, 1-2 mm long; ligules scarcely 1 mm long.^{[IFBC-E-flora]}
Flowers: Inflorescence a spike, 4-7 cm long, well exserted to partially enclosed by the inflated upper sheath, the rachis disarticulating, the segments 1.7-3 mm long; spikelets 3 to a node, all well-developed, the lateral ones short-stalked; glumes of the central spikelets 2-3 cm long, stalked or unstalked, long stiff-hairy basally, central florets slightly shorter to much shorter than the lateral florets; the rachillas prolonged past the florets for 2.5-3.5 mm, bristlelike; anthers 0.4-1.3 mm long. ^{[IFBC-E-flora]}
Notes:
Three subspecies occur in BC:
1. Central spikelet florets unstalked or nearly unstalked, the stalk if present less than 0.5 mm long; inner glumes of the lateral spikelets narrower than either glume of the central spikelets..................... ssp. Murinum
1. Central spikelet florets stalked, the stalks 1-2 mm long; inner glumes of the lateral spikelets as wide as those of the central spikelets.
2. Central florets slightly shorter than the lateral florets; anthers 0.5 mm long or less.................... ssp. glaucum (Steud.) Tzvelev
2. Central florets much shorter than the lateral florets; anthers 0.8-1.3 mm long.................... ssp. leporinum (Link) Asch. & Grabn. ^{[IFBC-E-flora]}

Edible Uses

• Seed: Seed - cooked. Used as a piñole[105, 161, 257]. Only used when easier and better foods were not available[257]. The seed can be ground into a flour and used as a cereal in making bread, porridge etc. ^[PFAF]
  

Medicinal Uses

• Diuretic: A decoction of the plant has been used in the treatment of bladder ailments[257]. ^[PFAF]
  

Cultivation & Propagation

• Succeeds in most soils and in climates ranging from sub-arctic to sub-tropical[171]. Easily grown in light soils[162].[PFAF]
  
• Seed - sow in situ in March or October and only just cover the seed. Make sure the soil surface does not dry out if the weather is dry. Germination takes place within 2 weeks.[PFAF]

References

• [E-flora] http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Hordeum%20murinum&redblue=Both&lifeform=6 [Accessed: 4/09/2015]
• [PFAF]http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Hordeum+murinum, Accessed April 9, 2015