Flora of North America species comparison

30-120 cm, erect, unbranched.

(25) 40-100 cm, erect or decumbent to ascending near the base, highly branched above the base;

nodes and internodes glabrous.

basal and cauline, pale green, sometimes glaucous;

sheaths longer or shorter than the internodes, glabrous except at the summit;

collars densely to sparsely pilose or glabrous;

ligules less than 0.5 mm;

blades 8-30 cm long, 1-2 mm wide, usually flat, often curled at maturity.

cauline;

sheaths usually slightly shorter than the internodes, glabrous or pilose;

collars often with a line of tangled hairs;

ligules about 0.5 mm;

blades 8-25 cm long, 2-4 mm wide, light green, flat to loosely involute, glabrous and smooth abaxially, scabridulous adaxially.

paniculate, 10-30 cm long, (4)8-26 cm wide;

rachis nodes with straight hairs, hairs to 0.8 mm;

primary branches 6-16 cm, abruptly spreading to divaricate, stiff to lax, with axillary pulvini, usually not spikelet-bearing below midlength.

paniculate, 10-20 cm long, 3-10 cm wide;

rachis nodes glabrous, scabrous, or strigose;

primary branches 1-4 cm, stiffly ascending, with axillary pulvini, with 1-4 spikelets per branch.

appressed, rarely spreading.

loosely congested.

1(3)-veined, brown or purple at maturity, acuminate;

lower glumes 6-13 mm;

upper glumes equaling or to 4 mm shorter than the lower glumes;

calluses 0.8-1.2 mm;

lemmas 10-15(17) mm, terminating in a strongly twisted, 2-4 mm awnlike beak, junction with the awns not conspicuous;

awns not disarticulating at maturity;

central awns 5-12 mm, markedly bent near the base;

lateral awns absent or to 1(3) mm, erect;

anthers 1.2-2.2 mm, brownish.

20-30 mm, yellowish-brown, 1-veined, apices narrowing to a 5-10 mm awn;

upper glumes slightly longer than the lower glumes;

calluses 3-4 mm;

lemmas 10-14 mm, dark and mottled at maturity, glabrous or occasionally sparsely pubescent, not beaked, junction of the lemma and awns evident;

awns twisted together basally into a 8-15 mm column, free portions 30-40 mm, those of the central and lateral awns similar in length, strongly curved to arcuate near the base, straight and strongly divergent to reflexed distally, disarticulating at the base of the column at maturity;

anthers 3, about 2.5 mm, brownish.

6-8 mm.

8-10 mm, dark brown.

= 22, 44.

= unknown.