Red Oat
Avena byzantina
Family: Poaceae or Gramineae
What it is like
Avena byzantina is a ANNUAL. It is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to July, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.
Height (m): 0
Where it is found
Dry wasteland, cultivated ground and meadows, especially on heavier soils. Mainly found on dry or saline soils.
Europe - Mediterranean.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 2
Seed - cooked. 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.
Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.
Coffee: the various substitutes that can be used instead of coffee.
Medicine
Rating: 0
Other
Rating:
The straw has a wide range of uses such as for bio-mass, fibre, mulch, paper-making and thatching. Some caution is advised in its use as a mulch since oat straw can infest strawberries with stem and bulb eelworm.
Fibre: Used for making cloth, rope, paper etc.
Mulch: Used for covering the ground to conserve the nutrients in the soil.
Paper: Related to the entry for Fibre, these plants have been specifically mentioned for paper making.
Thatching: Used for making thatched roofs.
How it is grown
We have very little information on this species, but it should be possible to grow it as a spring-sown annual in Britain, and might also succeed as an autumn-sown crop. A hexaploid species, one report says that it is possibly a sub-species of A. sterilis, and is often cultivated for its edible seed in warmer temperate zones, whilst some modern works see it as no more than a synonym of A. sativa. This species succeeds in saline soils. It tolerates a pH in the range 5.3 to 8.2. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus. Succeeds in any moderately fertile soil in full sun. 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.
Propagating it: Seed - sow in situ in early spring or in the autumn. Only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks.
Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;
Habit: Annual
Hardiness:
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Dry, moist