Flora of North America species comparison

5-90 cm, erect, slender, puberulent below the panicle.

20-80 (120) cm, erect.

usually densely and softly retrorsely pubescent to pilose, upper sheaths sometimes glabrous;

auricles absent;

ligules 2-3 mm, glabrous, obtuse, lacerate;

blades to 16 cm long, 1-6 mm wide, both surfaces softly hairy.

5-20 cm long, 3-8 cm wide, open, lax, drooping distally, usually 1-sided;

branches 1-4 cm, drooping, usually 1-sided and longer than the spikelets, usually at least 1 branch with 4-8 spikelets.

5-23 cm long, 2.5-12 cm wide, open, nodding;

branches spreading to ascending;

lower branches slightly drooping, often secund after anthesis, not sinuous.

10-20 mm, usually shorter than the panicle branches, sides parallel or diverging distally, moderately laterally compressed, often purplish-tinged, not densely crowded, with 4-8 florets.

10-20 mm, shorter than at least some panicle branches, ovoid-lanceolate or ovate, laterally compressed, not purple-tinged;

florets 4-9(10), ascending-spreading after flowering, bases visible at maturity;

rachilla internodes visible at maturity.

villous, pubescent, or glabrous, margins hyaline;

lower glumes 4-9 mm, 1-veined;

upper glumes 7-13 mm, 3-5-veined;

lemmas 9-12 mm, lanceolate, glabrous or pubescent to pilose, 5-7-veined, rounded over the midvein, margins hyaline, often with some hairs longer than those on the backs, apices acuminate, hyaline, bifid, teeth 0.8-2(3) mm;

awns 10-18 mm, straight, arising 1.5 mm or more below the lemma apices;

anthers 0.5-1 mm.

scabrous or glabrous;

lower glumes 4-6 mm, 3-5-veined;

upper glumes 6-7 mm, 7-veined;

lemmas 6.5-8.5(10) mm long, 1.7-2.5 mm wide, elliptic, coriaceous, obscurely 7-veined, rounded over the midvein, backs usually glabrous, sometimes pubescent, scabrous to puberulent on the margins and near the apices, margins evenly rounded, inrolled at maturity, apices acute to obtuse, bifid, teeth shorter than 1 mm;

awns (0)3-6(9.5) mm, straight or flexuous, arising less than 1.5 mm below the lemma apices;

anthers 1-2 mm.

equaling the paleas, thick, strongly inrolled at maturity.

sheaths glabrous or loosely pubescent and glabrate;

ligules 2-3 mm, glabrous, obtuse;

blades 15-30 cm long, 2-4 mm wide, abaxial surfaces pilose or glabrous, adaxial surfaces pilose.

= 14.

= 28.