Flora of North America species comparison

30-90 cm tall, to 3 mm thick, erect.

10-40 cm, erect or ascending.

retrorsely pilose, sometimes mostly glabrous, throats sometimes with hairs;

auricles absent;

ligules 1-4 mm, usually glabrous, obtuse, erose;

blades 8-18 cm long, 3-9 mm wide, flat, sparsely pilose on both surfaces or the abaxial surfaces glabrous.

12-25 cm, somewhat contracted or open;

lower branches shorter than 10 cm, 2-3(5) per node, initially erect to ascending, spreading at maturity, with 1-2 spikelets variously distributed.

6-15 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, racemose, dense, strongly contracted, stiffly erect;

branches shorter than the spikelets, stiff, erect, straight.

18-25 mm, elliptic to lanceolate, strongly laterally compressed, with 4-8 florets.

17-45 mm long, 4-7 mm wide, narrowly oblong or lanceolate, terete to moderately laterally compressed, usually 1 per node;

florets (4)8-12, bases concealed at maturity;

rachilla internodes concealed at maturity.

subequal, smooth or scabrous;

lower glumes 8-12.5 mm, 3-veined;

upper glumes 9.5-14 mm, 7-veined, about as long as the lowest lemma;

lemmas 9.5-14 mm, lanceolate, laterally compressed, prominently 7-veined, strongly keeled at least distally, glabrous or pubescent distally or throughout, marginal hairs, if present, longer than those elsewhere, apices entire or with acute teeth shorter than 1 mm;

awns 6-13 mm, sometimes slightly geniculate;

anthers 0.4-0.5 mm.

glabrous or puberulent;

lower glumes 7-9 mm, 3-veined, upper glumes 8-11 mm, 5-7-veined;

lemmas 11-15(17) mm long, 3-5 mm wide, lanceolate, glabrous or pubescent, 9-veined, rounded over the midvein, margins bluntly angled, not inrolled at maturity, apices and teeth acuminate, teeth shorter than 1 mm;

awns 12-20 mm, strongly divaricate at maturity, flattened and often basally twisted, arising 1.5 mm or more below the lemma apices;

anthers 0.75-1.5 mm.

equaling or shorter than the paleas, thin, weakly inrolled or flat.

sheaths densely retrorsely villous-pubescent, upper sheaths glabrous;

ligules 0.5-1 mm, glabrous, truncate, dentate or lacerate;

blades 5-20 cm long, 1.5-4 mm wide, pilose, sparingly pubescent, or subglabrous.

= 84.

= 14, 28.