Area of Adaptation Ribgrass is found in many different climate zones, but Ceres Tonic and Grasslands Tonic are adapted to climate zone 5 and warmer areas. Tonic is quite winter active, Lancelot somewhat more dormant during cool temperatures. Ribgrass is adapted to a wide range of soil benefiting from a deep tap root that mines sub-soil and gives it an advantage in poorly fertilized pastures and creating drought tolerance. Ribgrass is a prolific c seed yielding plant and where livestock don't eat all the blooms seed will mature and shatter providing a natural mechanism for maintaining a suitable stand. Primary Use Mixed pastures for grazing with combinations of clovers, alfalfa and many different grass species.
Excellent palatability makes it a natural with clovers and grazing brome.
It might be grazed out of tall fescue and Orchardgrass if these are allowed to become too mature. Nutritional Characteristics Plantain is highly valued as a medicinal herb for human use and is known to contain many biologically active chemical constituents. Live weight gain trials on pure stands suggest ribgrass can produce gains similar to ryegrass but not as great as clovers, alfalfa or chicory. The effectiveness of this is yet to be established by repeated testing. After two cycles of recurrent selection seed was harvested from those plants which exhibited erectness, dense tillering, high vigor and disease tolerance.