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agrostide stolonifere, carpet bentgrass, creeping bent, creeping bentgrass, fiorin, redtop, spreading bent

cloud grass

Habit Plants perennial; stoloniferous, stolons 5-100+ cm, rooting at the nodes, often forming a dense mat, without rhizomes. Plants annual.
Culms

(8)15-60 cm, erect from a geniculate base, sometimes rooting at the lower nodes, with (2)4-7 nodes.

10-75 cm, erect or geniculate, with 2-7 nodes.

Leaves

mostly cauline;

sheaths smooth;

ligules longer than wide, dorsal surfaces usually scabrous, rarely smooth, apices usually rounded, acute to truncate, erose to lacerate, basal ligules 0.7-4 mm, upper ligules 3-7.5 mm;

blades 2-10 cm long, 2-6 mm wide, flat.

mostly cauline;

sheaths scabrous;

ligules 1-6 mm, dorsal surfaces scabridulous, apices acute to rounded, erose to lacerate;

blades 5-15 cm long, 1-4 mm wide, flat.

Panicles

(3)4-20 cm long, less than 1/2 the length of the culm, 0.5-3(6) cm wide, narrowly contracted, dense, oblong to lanceolate, exserted from the sheaths at maturity, lowest node with 1-7 branches;

branches scabrous, ascending to appressed, except briefly spreading during anthesis, usually some branches at each node spikelet-bearing to the base, lower branches 2-6 cm;

pedicels 0.3-3.3 mm.

3-30 cm long, (2)5-20 cm wide, oblong to ovate, diffuse, usually over 1/2 the length of the culm, lowest node with (2)3-18 branches;

branches scabrous, erect to spreading, lower branches 4-15 cm;

pedicels (2.5)4-15 mm, much longer than the spikelets.

Spikelets

lanceolate, green and slightly to strongly suffused with purple.

lanceolate, usually purplish, sometimes green to yellowish green.

Glumes

subequal to unequal, 1.6-3 mm, lanceolate, 1-veined, sometimes scabridulous distally, at least on the midvein, acute to acuminate or apiculate;

callus hairs to 0.5 mm, sparse;

lemmas 1.4-2 mm, opaque to translucent, smooth, 5-veined, veins obscure or prominent distally, apices acute to obtuse, entire or the veins excurrent to about 0.1 mm, usually unawned, rarely with a subapical straight awn to about 1 mm;

paleas 0.7-1.4 mm, veins visible;

anthers 3, 0.9-1.4 mm.

subequal, 1.3-2.1 mm, 1-veined, sparsely aculeolate on the veins, obtuse;

calluses glabrous;

lemmas 0.5-0.8 mm, transparent, thin, veins scarcely visible, smooth and glabrous or rarely hairy, apices truncate to rounded or acute, toothed or erose, usually unawned, rarely awned from near the base;

paleas 0.4-0.7 mm, about as long as the lemmas and of similar texture;

anthers 3,1-1.4 mm.

Caryopses

0.9-1.3 mm;

endosperm solid.

0.6-0.8 mm.

2n

= 28, 35,42.

= 14.

Agrostis stolonifera

Agrostis nebulosa

Distribution
from FNA
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; HI; AB; BC; MB; NB; NL; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; Greenland
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Discussion

Agrostis stolonifera grows in areas that are often temporarily flooded, such as lakesides, marshes, salt marshes, lawns, and damp fields, as well as moist meadows, forest openings, and along streams. It will also colonize disturbed sites such as ditches, clearcuts, and overgrazed pastures. Its North American range extends from the subarctic into Mexico, mostly at low to middle elevations.

Agrostis stolonifera has been confused with A. gigantea (see previous). It is considered to be Eurasian, but some northern salt marsh and lakeside populations may be native. Agrostis stolonifera is also similar to A. castellana (p. 639); it differs in having longer, acute to truncate ligules that are longer than wide, and in possessing extensive stolons. The names A. palustris Huds. and A. maritima Lam. have been applied to plants with longer stolons; all forms intergrade. A hybrid between A. stolonifera and Polypogon monspeliensis, xAgropogon lutosus (p. 668), has been found in the Flora region. It differs from A. stolonifera in having awned glumes and lemmas. Agrostis stolonifera readily hybridizes with A. vinealis (see below), the hybrids being somewhat intermediate between the two parents.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Agrostis nebulosa is native to Spain and Portugal. It is cultivated as an ornamental and for dried flower arrangements, but occasional escapes have been found on roadsides, ditches, and in fields in widely scattered locations in the Flora region.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 24, p. 641. FNA vol. 24, p. 661.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Pooideae > tribe Poeae > Agrostis Poaceae > subfam. Pooideae > tribe Poeae > Agrostis
Sibling taxa
A. anadyrensis, A. blasdalei, A. canina, A. capillaris, A. castellana, A. clavata, A. densiflora, A. elliottiana, A. exarata, A. gigantea, A. hallii, A. hendersonii, A. hooveri, A. howellii, A. hyemalis, A. idahoensis, A. mertensii, A. microphylla, A. nebulosa, A. oregonensis, A. pallens, A. perennans, A. rossiae, A. scabra, A. tolucensis, A. variabilis, A. vinealis
A. anadyrensis, A. blasdalei, A. canina, A. capillaris, A. castellana, A. clavata, A. densiflora, A. elliottiana, A. exarata, A. gigantea, A. hallii, A. hendersonii, A. hooveri, A. howellii, A. hyemalis, A. idahoensis, A. mertensii, A. microphylla, A. oregonensis, A. pallens, A. perennans, A. rossiae, A. scabra, A. stolonifera, A. tolucensis, A. variabilis, A. vinealis
Synonyms A. stolonifera var. palustris, A. stolonifera var. compacta, A. palustris, A. maritima, A. alba var. stolonifera, A. alba var. palustris, A. alba forma aristigera
Name authority L Boiss. & Reut.
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