Flora of North America species comparison

10-300 cm;

internodes pith-filled.

strongly keeled, glabrous, scabrous, or pubescent;

ligules membranous, erose to lacerate or ciliate, occasionally absent;

blades, particularly those of the basal leaves, often with long, coarse hairs near the base of the adaxial surface and margins.

terminal, panicles with (1)5-30 spikelike branches, these usually borne digitately, occasionally in 2-several whorls, sometimes with a few isolated branches below the primary whorl(s), all branches usually exceeding the upper leaves;

branches with spikelets in 2 rows on 1 side of the branch axes.

solitary, sessile to pedicellate, laterally compressed, with 2-3(5) florets, usually only the lowest floret bisexual, rarely the lower 2 florets bisexual, remaining floret(s) sterile or staminate;

florets laterally compressed or terete, cylindrical to obovoid, awned or unawned, sterile and staminate florets progressively reduced distally if more than 1 present;

disarticulation usually beneath the lowest floret in the spikelets, all florets falling as a unit, sometimes at the uppermost cauline node, panicles falling intact.

unequal, exceeded by the florets, lanceolate, acute to acuminate, usually unawned, occasionally awned, awns to 0.3 mm;

calluses bearded;

lemmas of bisexual florets 3-veined, marginal veins pubescent, midveins usually glabrous, sometimes scabrous, usually extending into an awn, sometimes merely mucronate, awns to 37 mm, lemma apices truncate or obtuse, entire or bilobed, lobes, when present, sometimes awn-tipped, awns to 0.6 mm;

paleas shorter than the lemmas, 2-veined, veins scabrous;

anthers 3;

lodicules 2.

ovoid, elliptic, or obovoid.

= (9)10.