Flora of North America species comparison

60-170 cm, erect;

nodes (5)6-8, pubescent;

internodes usually glabrous, sometimes pubescent near the nodes.

45-120(180) cm tall, usually less than 3 mm thick, erect.

pilose, midrib of the culm leaves not abruptly narrowed just below the collar;

auricles absent;

ligules 2-4 mm, glabrous, truncate, erose or lacerate;

blades 20-35(37) mm long, 6-16 mm wide, flat, abaxial surfaces glabrous, adaxial surfaces pilose.

mostly glabrous or retrorsely soft pilose, throats usually hairy;

auricles sometimes present on the lower leaves;

ligules 1-3.5(4) mm, glabrous or sparsely hairy, acute to obtuse, lacerate or erose;

blades 8-30 cm long, 1-12 mm wide, flat or becoming involute, glabrous or sparsely pilose to pubescent on 1 or both surfaces.

10-25 cm, open, nodding;

branches ascending, spreading, or drooping.

5-40 cm, lax, open or erect;

lower branches usually shorter than 10 cm, 1-4 per node, ascending to strongly divergent or reflexed, with 1-4 spikelets variously distributed.

20-30 mm, elliptic to lanceolate, terete to moderately laterally compressed, with (4)6-10 florets.

20-40 mm, shorter than at least some pedicels and branches, elliptic to lanceolate, strongly laterally compressed, not crowded or overlapping, sometimes purplish, with 4-11 florets.

pubescent;

lower glumes 6-8.5 mm, 1(3)-veined;

upper glumes 8-11.5 mm, 3-veined, not mucronate;

lemmas 10-12 mm, lanceolate, rounded over the midvein, backs pubescent, margins more densely so, apices acute, entire;

awns 3.5-7 mm, straight, arising less than 1.5 mm below the lemma apices;

anthers 2-4 mm.

glabrous or pubescent;

lower glumes 7-11 mm, 3-7(9)-veined;

upper glumes 9-13 mm, shorter than the lowest lemma, 5-9(11)-veined;

lemmas 10-16(17) mm, lanceolate, laterally compressed, strongly keeled distally, usually more or less uniformly pubescent or pubescent on the margins only, sometimes glabrous or scabrous, 7-9-veined, veins usually not raised or riblike, apices entire or with acute teeth shorter than 1 mm;

awns 4-17 mm, sometimes slightly geniculate;

anthers 1-6 mm.

= 28.

= 28, 42, 56.