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poverty brome, sterile brome

Habit Plants annual, 35–100 cm tall.
Culms

glabrous.

Leaves

sheaths densely pubescent;

blades 4–20 cm × 1–6 mm; hairy on both surfaces.

Inflorescences

10–20 × 5–12 cm; open, nodding;

branches spreading, usually longer than the spikelets, with 1–2 spikelets.

Spikelets

20– 35 mm, moderately laterally compressed, with 5–9 florets.

Glumes

smooth or scabrous;

lower glumes 8–10 mm, 1(3)-veined;

upper glumes 12–15 mm, 3(5)-veined.

Lemmas

14–20 mm, narrowly lanceolate, pubescent or puberulent, 7(9)-veined;

margins hyaline;

tips acuminate; bifid, with teeth 0.2–3 mm, awned;

lemma awns 15–30 mm; straight.

Anthers

1–1.4 mm.

2n

=42, 56.

Bromus porteri

Bromus sterilis

Distribution
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Dry disturbed areas, overgrazed rangeland, disturbed grasslands. 0–1700m. Casc, Col, CR, Sisk, WV. CA, ID, NV, WA; north to British Columbia, east to CO and TX, eastern North America; Europe. Exotic.

This weedy brome with its long, dangling awns is very similar to B. diandrus except that it is more delicate with its smaller glumes, lemmas, and awns.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 373
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting
Sibling taxa
B. arenarius, B. briziformis, B. catharticus, B. ciliatus, B. commutatus, B. diandrus, B. hordeaceus, B. inermis, B. japonicus, B. laevipes, B. madritensis, B. orcuttianus, B. pacificus, B. rubens, B. secalinus, B. sitchensis, B. squarrosus, B. sterilis, B. suksdorfii, B. tectorum, B. vulgaris
B. arenarius, B. briziformis, B. catharticus, B. ciliatus, B. commutatus, B. diandrus, B. hordeaceus, B. inermis, B. japonicus, B. laevipes, B. madritensis, B. orcuttianus, B. pacificus, B. rubens, B. secalinus, B. sitchensis, B. squarrosus, B. suksdorfii, B. tectorum, B. vulgaris
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