UW Burke Herbarium species comparison

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Poa palustris

Poa laxiflora

fowl blue grass

loose-flower blue grass
Habit Rhizomatous perennial, the culms 9-12 dm. tall, hollow, not clustered, erect.
Leaves

Sheaths closed to about mid-length, strongly scabrous, keeled below the collar;

ligules thin, from 1 mm. long on basal leaves to 3 mm. long on upper leaves, obtuse to rounded, puberulent;

blades flat, 3-5 mm. broad, strongly scabrous on both surfaces, the tips abruptly prow-like.
Flowers

Inflorescence a loose, open panicle 12-20 cm. long, the 2 or 3 branches at each of the distant nodes spreading to reflexed;

spikelets loosely 3- to 4-flowered, the florets perfect;

glumes 3-nerved, keeled, narrow, the first 3 mm. long, the second 3.5 mm. long;

lemmas about 4 mm. long, 5-nerved., strongly webbed at the base and silky-pubescent on the keel and marginal nerves;

palea subequal to the lemma, 2-keeled.

Poa palustris

Poa laxiflora
Flowering time May-August June-July
Habitat Sea level to open meadows and forested areas in the mountains, always where moist. Moist woods to rocky, open slopes, from near sea level to lower elevations in the mountains.
Distribution
Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east across most of North America to the Atlantic Coast.
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Occurring west of the Cascades crest in Washington; Southern Alaska to northwestern Oregon.
[BONAP county map]
Origin Introduced from Europe Native
Conservation status Not of concern Sensitive in Washington (WANHP)
Sibling taxa
P. alpina, P. annua, P. arctica, P. bolanderi, P. bulbosa, P. compressa, P. confinis, P. curtifolia, P. cusickii, P. fendleriana, P. glauca, P. howellii, P. infirma, P. interior, P. laxiflora, P. leibergii, P. leptocoma, P. lettermanii, P. macrantha, P. marcida, P. ×multnomae, P. nemoralis, P. nervosa, P. paucispicula, P. pratensis, P. secunda, P. stenantha, P. suksdorfii, P. trivialis, P. unilateralis, P. wheeleri
P. alpina, P. annua, P. arctica, P. bolanderi, P. bulbosa, P. compressa, P. confinis, P. curtifolia, P. cusickii, P. fendleriana, P. glauca, P. howellii, P. infirma, P. interior, P. leibergii, P. leptocoma, P. lettermanii, P. macrantha, P. marcida, P. ×multnomae, P. nemoralis, P. nervosa, P. palustris, P. paucispicula, P. pratensis, P. secunda, P. stenantha, P. suksdorfii, P. trivialis, P. unilateralis, P. wheeleri
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the University of Washington's Burke Herbarium.



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