Calamagrostis rubescens
Calamagrostis canadensis
pine reed grass, pinegrass
bluejoint, bluejoint grass, bluejoint reedgrass, calamagrostide du Canada, Canada reed grass
(50)60-100(105) cm, unbranched, usually smooth, rarely slightly scabrous beneath the panicles;
nodes (1)2-3(4).
(32)65-112(180) cm, often branching above the base, smooth or slightly scabrous beneath the panicles;
nodes (2)3-7(8).
smooth or slightly scabrous;
collars often hairy, rarely glabrous;
ligules (2)3-5(6) mm, truncate to obtuse, often lacerate;
blades (6)8-40(42) cm long, (1)2-5(8) mm wide, usually flat, abaxial surfaces smooth or slightly scabrous, adaxial surfaces smooth or scabrous, glabrous or sparsely hairy.
smooth or scabrous;
collars usually scabrous, rarely smooth or hairy;
ligules (1)3-8(12) mm, lacerate;
blades (10)16-31(50) cm long, 2-8(11) mm wide, flat, lax, abaxial surfaces scabrous, adaxial surfaces usually strongly scabrous, rarely smooth or with scattered hairs, often glaucous.
(5)6-15(25) cm long, (0.7)1.5-2(2.7) cm wide, contracted to somewhat open, erect, usually greenish, infrequently purplish;
branches (1.2)2-4(10) cm, usually slightly scabrous, rarely densely long-scabrous, spikelet-bearing to the base.
(6)9-17(25) cm long, (1)2-4(8) cm wide, often contracted when young, open at maturity, nodding, usually purplish, sometimes greenish to straw-colored;
branches 2.7-6(12) cm, scabrous, spikelets sparsely to densely concentrated on the distal 2/3.
(3)4-4.5(5.5) mm;
rachilla prolongations 0.6-1.5(2) mm, hairs 1.2-2 mm.
2-4.5(5.2) mm;
rachilla prolongations 0.5-1 mm, hairs 1.5-3.2 mm.
rounded to slightly keeled, mostly smooth, keels rarely slightly scabrous, lateral veins usually obscure, rarely prominent, apices acute;
callus hairs (0.5)1-1.5(2.5) mm, 0.2-0.5(0.7) times as long as the lemmas, sparse;
lemmas 2.5-3.5(4) mm, (0.5)1-2 mm shorter than the glumes;
awns 2.8-3.5(4.5) mm, usually attached to the lower 1/5 of the lemmas, rarely higher, exserted, stout and readily distinguished from the callus hairs, strongly bent;
anthers (1)1.3-2(2.6) mm.
rounded or keeled, smooth or scabrous, keels often long-scabrous, lateral veins obscure to prominent, apices acute to acuminate;
callus hairs (1.5)2-3.5(4.5) mm, (0.5)0.9-1.2(1.5) times as long as the lemmas, abundant;
lemmas 2-3.1(4) mm, 0-2.1 mm shorter than the glumes;
awns 0.9-3.1 mm, attached to the lower (1/10)1/5-1/2(7/10) of the lemmas, usually not exserted, delicate, often difficult to distinguish from the callus hairs, usually straight;
anthers (0.8)1.2-1.6(2.6) mm.
= 28, 42, 56.
= 42-66.
Calamagrostis rubescens
Calamagrostis canadensis
Calamagrostis rubescens grows at 50-2800 m, usually in open montane pine or aspen forests and parklands, infrequently in sagebrush steppes, chaparral, and meadows. It is primarily a species of interior western North America, although it reaches the Pacific coast in southern California. The distribution extends from central British Columbia and Alberta east to the Cypress Hills of eastern Alberta and the Pasquia and Cub hills of Saskatchewan, south to western California, Nevada, northeastern Utah, and central Colorado. It is considered threatened in Saskatchewan.
Calamagrostis rubescens is similar to C. koelerioides (p. 721). The two have traditionally been distinguished by the presence of hairs on the leaf collars of C. rubescens, and their absence from C. koelerioides; a more reliable differentiation is the shorter lemmas, glumes, and awns of C. rubescens. Calamagrostis rubescens and C. porteri (p. 721) appear to be closely related. They may be part of the general phenomenon of eastern and western vicariants.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Calamagrostis canadensis is a species of moist meadows, thickets, bog edges, and forest openings. It grows from sea level to 3400 m. It occurs widely throughout the Flora region, except in Oklahoma, Texas, and the southeastern United States. Its range also extends from northern Asia to northeastern China and Japan, with additional scattered populations elsewhere in Asia. Calamagrostis canadensis is closely related to, and possibly conspecific with, the European C. purpurea (Trin.) Trin. It hybridizes with Ammophila breviligulata (p. 777) in Grand Island, Michigan and on the adjacent mainland, forming xCalammophila don-hensonii Reznicek & Judz. Calamagrostis canadensis also appears to form hybrids with the nearly sympatric C. porteri (p. 721) in rocky wooded sites in central Virginia. These putative hybrids have hairy collars, relatively long callus hairs, and short awns. The apparently sterile C. perplexa (see previous) is intermediate between C. canadensis and C. porteri (Greene 1980).
A high degree of pollen sterility has been documented in some populations, suggesting that seed formation via apomixis is common; sexual reproduction is also documented. The many forms, varieties, and subspecies that have been described for this species probably represent clones. The three varieties recognized here intergrade, and an argument could be made that their recognition is not warranted. Nevertheless, the extreme forms along the gradient of variation can be distinguished most readily by the glumes.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Spikelets (3.5)4-4.5(5.2) mm long; glumes usually scabrous over the entire surface, the prickles on the keels hairlike, often bent; glume apices distinctly acuminate | var. langsdorffii |
1. Spikelets 2-4 mm long; glumes smooth or scabrous, often scabrous only on the keels, prickles straight; glume apices acute, rarely acuminate. | → 2 |
2. Spikelets 2.5-4 mm long, lemmas usually shorter than the glumes; glumes rounded to broadly keeled, with raised midveins; glume apices usually acute, rarely acuminate | var. canadensis |
2. Spikelets 2-3 mm long; lemmas usually about as long as the glumes; glumes rounded, midveins not raised; glume apices acute | var. macouniana |
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