FNA: Bromus vulgaris vs. Bromus sect. Bromopsis

Distribution

CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC

Discussion

Bromus vulgaris grows in shaded or partially shaded, often damp, coniferous forests along the coast, and inland in montane pine, spruce, fir, and aspen forests, from sea level to about 2000 m. Its range extends from coastal British Columbia eastward to southwestern Alberta and southward to central California, northern Utah, and western Wyoming.

Varieties have been described within Bromus vulgaris; because their variation is overlapping, none are recognized here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Bromus sect. Bromopsis is sometimes incorrectly called sect. Pnigma Dumort. It is native to Eurasia as well as to North and South America, and has about 90 species.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key

1. Plants rhizomatous.	→ 2
2. Culms 30-90 cm long, forming distinct clumps; rhizomes short	B. riparius
2. Culms 50-135 cm long, single or few together; rhizomes short to long-creeping.	→ 3
3. Lemma backs sparsely to densely hairy throughout, or on the lower portion and margins, or along the marginal veins and keel; cauline nodes and leaf blades pubescent or glabrous; awns usually present, to 7.5 mm long, sometimes absent	B. pumpellianus
3. Lemma backs usually glabrous, occasionally sparsely puberulent at the base and sometimes on the margins; cauline nodes and leaf blades usually glabrous, rarely hairy; awns absent or to 3 mm long	B. inermis
1. Plants not rhizomatous.	→ 4
4. Anthers (3.5)4-6(6.8) mm long; awns 2.5-7.5 mm long; plants of the Yukon River drainage of Alaska	B. pumpellianus
4. Anthers 1-7 mm long; awns 1-12 mm long; plants of various locations in the Flora region, if in the Yukon River drainage of Alaska, anthers 1-1.4 mm long.	→ 5
5. Culms with 9-20 nodes; collars and throats densely pilose; auricles 1-2.5 mm long on most lower leaves	B. latiglumis
5. Culms with (1)2-9 nodes; collars and throats pubescent or glabrous; auricles, if present, of various lengths.	→ 6
6. Most lower glumes within a panicle 3-veined, sometimes some 1-veined.	→ 7
7. Most upper glumes within a panicle 5-veined, sometimes some 3-veined.	→ 8
8. Awns 1.5-3 mm long; anthers 1.5-2.5 mm long; ligules 0.5-1 mm long	B. kalmii
8. Awns 3-7 mm long; anthers 3-6 mm long; ligules to 4.2 mm long.	→ 9
9. Glumes glabrous; ligules glabrous	B. laevipes
9. Glumes usually pubescent, rarely glabrous; ligules usually pubescent or pilose, sometimes glabrous.	→ 10
10. Margins of the glumes and lemmas often bronze-tinged; ligules to 1.5 mm long; auricles usually present on the lower leaves, rarely absent	B. pseudolaevipes
10. Margins of the glumes and lemmas not bronze-tinged; ligules 1-3 mm long; auricles sometimes present	B. grandis
7. Most upper glumes within a panicle 3-veined, sometimes some 5-veined.	→ 11
11. Culms 70-180 cm tall; awns 3-8 mm long; anthers 3-6 mm long.	→ 12
12. Lower leaf sheaths pilose, hairs 2-4 mm long; blades glabrous or with pilose margins	B. orcuttianus
12. Lower leaf sheaths densely pubescent, hairs to 1 mm long; blades densely pubescent.	→ 13
13. Blades 7.5-16.5 cm long; culm nodes 1-2(3)	B. hallii
13. Blades (13)18-38 cm long; culm nodes 3-7	B. grandis
11. Culms 30-100 cm tall; awns 1—4 mm long; anthers (1)1.5-4 mm long.	→ 14
14. Leaf blades often glaucous; glumes usually glabrous, rarely slightly pubescent	B. frondosus
14. Leaf blades not glaucous; glumes usually pubescent, rarely glabrous.	→ 15
15. Midrib of the culm leaves abruptly narrowed just below the collar; auricles frequently present on the lower leaves; plants of western Texas	B. anomalus
15. Midrib of the culm leaves not abruptly narrowed just below the collar; auricles absent; plants of western North America, including Texas	B. porteri
6. Most lower glumes within a panicle 1-veined, sometimes some 3-veined.	→ 16
16. Upper glumes within a panicle consistently 5-veined; collars with a dense line of hairs; lower sheaths often sericeous; ligules 0.4-1 mm long	B. nottowayanus
16. All or most upper glumes within a panicle 3-veined, sometimes some with 2 additional faint lateral veins; collars glabrous or hairy, hairs evenly distributed over the surface, not in a dense line; lower sheaths glabrous or hairy, not sericeous; ligules to 6 mm long.	→ 17
17. Plants annual; lemmas glabrous; ligules pubescent	B. texensis
17. Plants perennial; lemmas usually pubescent on the backs and/or margins, sometimes glabrous; ligules usually glabrous, sometimes pubescent or pilose.	→ 18
18. Awns (4)6-12 mm long; ligules 2-6 mm long	B. vulgaris
18. Awns 1-8 mm long; ligules to 4 mm long.	→ 19
19. Blades densely pubescent on both surfaces, 7.5-16.5 cm long; anthers 3-6 mm long; awns 3.5-7 mm long	B. hallii
19. Blades glabrous or hairy on 1 or both surfaces, (3)5-60 cm long, if 7.5-16.5 cm long and densely pubescent on both surfaces, then anthers 1-4 mm long and/or awns 1-4 mm long.	→ 20
20. Panicle branches appressed to slightly spreading; culm nodes 1-4.	→ 21
21. Awns 2-5 mm long; anthers 2-3.5 mm long; blades flat	B. suksdorfii
21. Awns (4)5-8 mm long; anthers 3-6.5 mm long; blades sometimes involute.	→ 22
22. Culms 90-150 cm tall; ligules 1-3 mm long.	B. orcuttianus
22. Culms 50-100 cm tall; ligules to 1.5 mm long	B. erectus
20. Panicle branches ascending to drooping; culm nodes (1)2-8.	→ 21
23. Midrib of the culm leaves abruptly narrowed just below the collar; auricles frequently present on the lower leaves; plants of western Texas	B. anomalus
23. Midrib of the culm leaves not abruptly narrowed just below the collar; auricles sometimes present; plants of various distribution, including Texas.	→ 24
24. Glumes usually pubescent, rarely glabrous.	→ 25
25. Upper glume mucronate	B. mucroglumis
25. Upper glume not mucronate.	→ 26
26. Awns (1)2-3(3.5) mm long; blades 2-6 mm wide	B. porteri
26. Awns 3-7(8) mm long; blades 3-19 mm wide.	→ 27
27. Anthers 3-6 mm long; ligules densely pubescent to pilose	B. grandis
27. Anthers 2-4(5) mm long; ligules glabrous.	→ 28
28. Ligules 2-4 mm long	B. pacificus
28. Ligules 0.5-2 mm long	B. pubescens
24. Glumes usually glabrous, sometimes pubescent.	→ 29
29. Ligules 2-3.5 mm long; auricles present	B. ramosus
29. Ligules 0.4-2 mm long; auricles sometimes present.	→ 30
30. Lemma margins and backs usually pubescent, sometimes nearly glabrous; awns 2-4 mm long; anthers 1.8-4 mm long	B. lanatipes
30. Lemma margins conspicuously hirsute or densely pilose, at least along the lower 1/2, the backs glabrous at least on the lower lemmas in a spikelet; awns 3-5 mm long; anthers 1-2.7 mm long.	→ 31
31. Backs of all lemmas glabrous; anthers 1-1.4 mm long; upper glumes 7.1-8.5 mm long	B. ciliatus
31. Backs of the upper lemmas in a spikelet hairy; anthers 1.6-2.7 mm long; upper glumes 8.9-11.3 mm long	B. richardsonii