Seedling emergence of 30 open-pollinated progeny lines of Russian wild ryegrass (Psathyrostachys juncea (Fisch.) Nevski. Syn: Elymus junceus Fisch.) ranging in seed weight from 2.1 to 4.5 mg/seed was evaluated in laboratory and greenhouse tests and compared to stand establishment capability in the field. Increases in emergence percentage and coleoptile length associated with increased seed weight diminished when seed weights of parents increased beyond 3.0 mg/seed. Emergence in two field environments was correlated with emergence from a 5-cm planting depth in the greenhouse (r = 0.70** and 0.71** for field tests 1 and 2, respectively) and with coleoptile length (r = 0.51** and 0.64**), but not with emergence under laboratory-induced drought stress of −1.1 MPa matric potential (r = −0.05 and 0.13). Experimental error was high for measurements of forage yields in the establishment year (CV = 38% and 36% for field tests 1 and 2, respectively), and resources required to obtain reliable yields would limit testing to a small number of entries. Preliminary screening of a Russian wild ryegrass population for improved seedling vigor could be accomplished by first eliminating plants with small seed size by visual assessment of seed samples. This could then be followed by selection for increased coleoptile length among progeny lines from those plants with medium or large seed.Key words: Russian wild ryegrass, seedling vigor, stand establishment, seed weight, coleoptile length