Avena brevis
Roth
Poaceae
Avena mandoniana Coss. & Balansa
Avena sativa brevis (Roth) Fiori
Avena strigosa brevis (Roth) Hausskn.
Avena strigosa brevis (Roth) Hayek
Avena strigosa mandoniana Tab.Morais
Avena uniflora Parl.
Common Name:
Young plants growing in the Botanischer Garten München-Nymphenburg, Munich, Germany
Photograph by: Daderot
Public domain
Young plants growing in the Botanischer Garten München-Nymphenburg, Munich, Germany
Photograph by: Daderot
Public domain
General Information
Avena brevis is an annual grass with erect or ascending culms 40 - 70cm long.
A species of oats, the plant produces an edible seed. Of little commercial importance, although it is locally cultivated in sandy fields in Europe and is also used in mountainous regions because the seed ripens quickly[
2- Title
- Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hedrick. U. P.
- Publisher
- Dover Publications
- Year
- 1972
- ISBN
- 0-486-20459-6
- Description
- Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
,
57- Title
- Plants for Man.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Schery. R. W.
- Publisher
-
- Year
-
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
].
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
50- Title
- Flora Europaea
- Publication
-
- Author
- ?
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1964
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for Europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.
Range
Europe - Poland and Germany, south to Portugal, east to former Yugoslavia
Habitat
Dry wasteland, cultivated ground and meadows, especially on heavier soils[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Properties
| Edibility Rating |  |
| Other Uses Rating |  |
| Habit | Annual |
| Height | 0.50 m |
| Pollinators | Wind |
| Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
Succeeds in any moderately fertile soil in full sun[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
A diploid species, it is of little commercial importance[
57- Title
- Plants for Man.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Schery. R. W.
- Publisher
-
- Year
-
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
] but is locally cultivated in sandy fields in Europe for its edible seed[
50- Title
- Flora Europaea
- Publication
-
- Author
- ?
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1964
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for Europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.
]. It is often used in mountainous regions because the seed ripens quickly[
2- Title
- Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hedrick. U. P.
- Publisher
- Dover Publications
- Year
- 1972
- ISBN
- 0-486-20459-6
- Description
- Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
].
A parent of the cultivated species of oats[
171- Title
- Economic Botany.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hill. A. F.
- Publisher
- The Maple Press
- Year
- 1952
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some detail about the plants it does cover.
].
Closely related to Avena sativa, differing mainly in its small spikelets and plumper lemmas[
236- Title
- Manual of the Grasses of the United States
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hitchcock. A. S.
- Publisher
- Dover Publications. New York.
- Year
- 1971
- ISBN
- 0-486-22717-0
- Description
- A nice and comprehensive flora, though a bit dated. Good line drawings of each plant, plus a brief idea of the habitat and a few notes on plant uses. Not for the casual reader.
].
Oats are in general easily grown plants but, especially when grown on a small scale, the seed is often completely eaten out by birds. Some sort of netting seems to be the best answer on a garden scale.
Edible Uses
Seed - cooked[
57- Title
- Plants for Man.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Schery. R. W.
- Publisher
-
- Year
-
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
,
105- Title
- Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Tanaka. T. & Nakao S.
- Publisher
- Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo
- Year
- 1976
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
,
171- Title
- Economic Botany.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hill. A. F.
- Publisher
- The Maple Press
- Year
- 1952
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some detail about the plants it does cover.
]. The seed ripens in the latter half of summer and, when harvested and dried, can store for several years. It has a floury texture and a mild, somewhat creamy flavour. It can be used as a staple food crop in either savoury or sweet dishes. The seed can be cooked whole, though it is more commonly ground into a flour and used as a cereal in all the ways that oats are used, especially as a porridge but also to make biscuits, sourdough bread etc. The seed can also be sprouted and eaten raw or cooked in salads, stews etc.
The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.
Medicinal
None known
Other Uses
The straw has a wide range of uses such as for bio-mass, fibre, mulch, paper-making and thatching[
171- Title
- Economic Botany.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hill. A. F.
- Publisher
- The Maple Press
- Year
- 1952
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some detail about the plants it does cover.
]. Some caution is advised in its use as a mulch since oat straw can infest strawberries with stem and bulb eelworm.
Propagation
Seed - sow in situ in early spring or in the autumn. Only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks.
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Useful Temperate Plants Database 2016 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
