Leymus innovatus is a species of grass known by the common names downy ryegrass, boreal wildrye, hairy wildrye, fuzzyspike wildrye, northern wildrye, and northwestern wildrye. It is native to northern North America from Alaska to eastern Canada and south to South Dakota. This perennial grass reproduces by seed or by spreading via its rhizomes. The stems grow up to about 80 to 105 centimeters tall. The inflorescence is a spike up to 16 centimeters long by 2 wide, with spikelets in pairs or threes.