This annual grass with a broadly Mediterranean distribution is present in all regions of Italy except in the Valle d'Aosta. It grows in ruderal sites, on arid primitive soils rich in nitrogenous compounds and calcareous skeleton, such as along railway embankments and roadsides, on gravelly slopes, in cracks of stone walls, below the montane belt. The species is sporadic on the edge of the Sardinian temporary ponds, in contact with ruderal vegetation: it is very evident in late summer for the inflorescences which become reddish. The genusc name derives from the Greek 'an-isos' (different, unequal) and 'anthos' (flower) and therefore means 'with unequal spikelets'; the species name refers to the city of Madrid. The genus name of the synonym, from the Greek 'broma' (food), was mentioned by Theophrastus for a grass whose seeds were used as food. Flowering period: March to April. Syn.: Bromus madritensis subsp.madritensis L.

Italian name(s): Anisanta di Madrid (Italia), Forasacchino (Toscana), Forasacco (Toscana), Forasacco dei muri (Italia).