Bothriochloa pertusa
Bothriochloa hybrida
pitted beardgrass, pitted bluestem
hybrid beardgrass, hybrid bluestem
to 100 cm, often decumbent or stoloniferous, freely branching;
nodes bearded.
30-80 cm, stiffly erect, moderately branched above the base;
nodes glabrous or puberulent.
mostly basal, green, sometimes glaucous;
sheaths glabrous, keeled;
ligules 0.7-1.5 mm;
blades 3-15 cm long, 3-4 mm wide, flat, margins and ligule regions hairy.
primarily cauline;
sheaths glabrous, green, sometimes glaucous;
ligules 1-2 mm;
blades 5-25 cm long, 2-5 mm wide, flat to folded, usually ciliate, with long hairs near the base and some hairs on the adaxial surface.
3-5 cm, fan-shaped, often purplish;
rachises 0.2-2 cm, with 3-8 branches;
branches 3-4.5 cm, longer than the rachises, usually with 1 rame;
rame internodes with villous margins, with 1-3 mm hairs.
5-12 cm, lanceolate;
rachises usually shorter than 5 cm;
branches 3-8, without axillary pulvini, lower branches longer than the rachises; at least the lower branches rebranched and with multiple rames;
rame internodes with 5-7 mm marginal hairs.
spikelets 3-4 mm, lanceolate;
callus hairs about 1 mm;
lower glumes sparsely hirtellous, with a prominent dorsal pit near the middle;
awns 10-17 mm;
anthers 1-1.8 mm, yellow.
spikelets 4.5-6.5 mm, narrowly ovate;
lower glumes 4.5-5.7(6.5) mm, sparsely hairy near the base, with a dorsal pit above the middle;
awns 18-25 mm;
anthers 0.5-1 mm.
spikelets the same size as the sessile spikelets, sterile, pitted or not, occasionally with 2 pits.
spikelets 2.2-3.6 mm, sterile.
= 40, 60.
= 120.
Bothriochloa pertusa
Bothriochloa hybrida
Bothriochloa pertusa is native to the Eastern Hemisphere, and was introduced to the southern United States as a warm-season pasture grass. It now grows in disturbed, moist, grassy places and pastures in the region, at elevations of 2-200 m. It has not persisted at all locations shown on the map.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Bothriochloa hybrida grows in open grasslands, rangeland pastures, disturbed ground, and roadsides, often on calcareous soil, usually at 50-500 m. Its range extends from southern Texas and Louisiana to central Mexico. It resembles B. edwardsiana in some respects, but the latter species has a less robust habit, more predominantly basal foliage, and narrower leaf blades.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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