Calamagrostis sesquiflora
Calamagrostis breweri
one-and-a-half-flower reedgrass
Brewer's reedgrass, short hair reed grass
(15)30-46(50) cm, unbranched, usually smooth, rarely slightly scabrous beneath the panicles;
nodes 1-2(3).
(18)29-54 cm, unbranched, smooth beneath the panicles;
nodes 1-2(3).
and collars smooth;
ligules (0.5)2-5(6) mm, usually truncate, sometimes obtuse, usually entire, sometimes lacerate;
blades (3)8-25(31) cm long, (2)3-7 mm wide, flat, abaxial surfaces usually scabrous, rarely smooth, adaxial surfaces smooth or slightly scabrous, glabrous or sparsely hairy.
basally concentrated;
sheaths and collars smooth or slightly scabrous;
ligules 1.7-4.1(6) mm, usually lacerate;
blades (2)10-15 cm long, 0.9-1.7 mm wide when flat, 0.4-0.6 mm in diameter when dry and involute, abaxial surfaces scabrous, adaxial surfaces sparsely hairy.
4-11(12) cm long, 0.8-2.5(2.8) cm wide, erect, contracted to somewhat open, usually purple-tinged, sometimes brown or green;
branches 1.5-3(4) cm, scabrous, prickles sometimes almost hairlike, usually spikelet-bearing to the base, lowest branches sometimes not so.
(4)5.7-8.5 cm long, 0.7-5.2 cm wide, usually open, sometimes contracted, mostly erect, dark purple;
branches (1)2-3(3.5) cm, smooth, spikelets usually confined to the ends of the branches.
(5)5.5-8.5(9.5) mm;
rachilla prolongations (1)1.5(2.2) mm, hairs 1-2.2 mm.
3-5 mm;
rachilla prolongations about 1.5 mm, hairs 1.5-2 mm.
keeled, keels usually scabrous for their whole length, sometimes the surfaces also scabrous, lateral veins prominent, apices long-acuminate, usually twisted distally;
callus hairs (0.8)1.2-1.8(3) mm, 0.1-0.4 times as long as the lemmas, abundant;
lemmas (3.5)4-4.5(6) mm, (0.5)1-2.5(4.5) mm shorter than the glumes;
awns (5.4)7-11(13) mm, attached to the lower 1/10 – 2/5 of the lemmas, exserted more than 2 mm, stout, easily distinguished from the callus hairs, bent;
anthers (1.2)2.2-3(3.4) mm.
rounded, usually smooth, occasionally scabrous at the apices, lateral veins obscure, apices acute to attenuate;
callus hairs 0.3-1.2 mm, 0.2-0.5 times as long as the lemmas, sparse;
lemmas 2.5-4 mm, 0.5-1 mm shorter than the glumes;
awns 3.5-5.5 mm, attached to the lower 1/10 – 3/10 of the lemmas, exserted, bent;
anthers 1.3-2.6 mm.
= 28.
= 42.
Calamagrostis sesquiflora
Calamagrostis breweri
Calamagrostis sesquiflora grows at 0-1000 m in open heath, meadows, and forest openings, on or at the base of open rocky cliffs and knolls, as well as in moist talus. It grows in strictly maritime habitats along the west coast of North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska to the Queen Charlotte Islands and south to Vancouver Island (Brooks Peninsula) in British Columbia. There is also a single collection from the coast of mainland British Columbia. In northeast Asia, it ranges into the Kamchatka Peninsula and Kuril Archipelago.
Some specimens from the northwestern United States are incorrectly identified, partly because an earlier name for Trisetum spicatum (L.) K. Richt. was Trisetum sesquiflorum Trin.
Calamagrostis sesquiflora has sometimes included C. tacomensis (see next) [as C. vaseyi Beal]. Several specimens that were previously identified as C. sesquiflora are actually C. tacomensis. Calamagrostis sesquiflora differs in preferring moister habitats, having wider leaves, callus hairs that are shorter relative to the lemmas, shorter panicle branches, and glumes that are often twisted at the apices.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Calamagrostis breweri grows in moist subalpine and alpine meadows, lake margins, and stream banks, at 1700-2600 m, from Mount Hood in Oregon south to north of the Carson Pass area in Alpine and Amador counties, California. It differs from C. bolanderi (p. 719) in having basally concentrated leaves.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
BC
OR
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
CA
