Flora of North America species comparison

70-150 cm tall, 3-6 mm thick at the base, erect, rarely branched.

mostly cauline;

sheaths usually longer than the internodes, remaining intact at maturity, glabrous or appressed pilose;

collars glabrous or pilose at the sides;

ligules less than 0.5 mm;

blades (10)15-30 cm long, 1.5-3 mm wide, flat at the base, involute toward the apex, straight to somewhat lax at maturity, glabrous abaxially, yellowish-green when fresh, drying stramineous or darker.

paniculate, (15)20-55 cm long, 2-4 cm wide;

nodes glabrous or with short, straight hairs;

primary branches (4)5-20 cm, appressed to narrowly ascending, without axillary pulvini, naked below, with 5-15 overlapping spikelets distally.

6-10(12) mm, 1-veined, 1-keeled, awns less than 4 mm, brownish;

lower glumes from 3/4 as long as to 1 mm longer than the upper glumes;

calluses 1-2 mm;

lemmas 5-8 mm, often reddish-mottled, apices not strongly twisted, junction with the awns not evident;

awns about equally thick, divergent, spirally contorted at the base but usually not with distinct coils, not disarticulating at maturity;

central awns 10-15 mm;

lateral awns 8-13 mm;

anthers 3, about 2 mm.

4-5 mm, chestnut-colored.

= unknown.