Dichanthelium wilcoxianum
Dichanthelium ovale
fall panicum, fall rosette grass, Wilcox's panicgrass
eggleaf rosette grass, stiff-leaf panicgrass, stiff-leaf rosette-panicgrass
15-35 cm, stiffly erect, all but the upper 2-4 internodes very short;
nodes glabrous or with weak, reflexed hairs;
internodes purplish-gray, sparsely pubescent;
fall phase developing early, forming erect branches from the lower or midculm nodes, each branch terminating in a partially included panicle of 8-16 spikelets, no sterile shoots formed.
15-60 cm, usually more than 1 mm thick, not delicate, mostly ascending or spreading, often decumbent;
nodes densely to sparsely bearded with spreading, retrorse, or appressed hairs;
internodes, particularly the lower internodes, usually long-hairy with appressed or ascending hairs, occasionally with spreading hairs, occasionally with shorter hairs, rarely nearly glabrous;
fall phase with decumbent to prostrate culms, branching developing early and forming dense fascicles with erect, slightly reduced blades and greatly reduced secondary panicles.
usually 3;
sheaths hirsute, hairs papillose-based;
ligules 0.5-1 mm;
blades 4-8 cm long, 2-5 mm wide, all alike, stiffly erect, green to grayish-green, flat, not plicate, sparsely pilose.
4-7;
sheaths shorter than the internodes, pilose, hairs to 4 mm, occasionally with shorter, spreading hairs underneath;
ligules and pseudoligules 1-5 mm, of hairs;
blades 4-10 cm long, 3-10 mm wide, relatively firm, mostly ascending or spreading, 1 or both surfaces sparsely to densely pubescent with appressed or erect hairs, hairs to 5 mm, bases rounded or slightly narrowed, margins often whitish, ciliate basally, scabridulous elsewhere.
2.4-3.2 mm long, 0.7-1.2 mm wide, ellipsoid to obovoid, often reddish throughout, short-pubescent.
1.8-3 mm, ellipsoid or obovoid, densely to sparsely pilose or papillose-pilose, obtuse or slightly acute.
0.7-1.2 mm, triangular;
upper glumes and lower lemmas about equaling the upper florets;
upper florets 1.9-2.5 mm, ellipsoid, pointed.
1/3 – 1/2 as long as the spikelets, often triangular, not strongly veined, usually acute or subacute;
upper glumes usually slightly shorter than the lower lemmas and upper florets at maturity, not strongly veined;
lower florets sterile;
upper florets 1.6-2.5 mm, ellipsoid (slightly less than 1/2 as wide as long, or wider in subsp. praecocius), subacute.
rosettes poorly differentiated;
sheaths glabrous;
blades 2-4 cm, narrow, similar to those of the lower cauline leaves, ascending to spreading.
rosettes well-differentiated;
blades 1-8 cm, lanceolate, often conspicuously ciliate.
panicles 3-5 cm long, 2-4 cm wide, ovoid, open, shortly exserted, with 12-32 spikelets;
branches short, stiff, spreading;
pedicels mostly 4-8 mm, spreading.
panicles 3-10 cm long, nearly as wide when fully expanded;
rachises and branches often stiffly ascending or spreading, usually pilose basally.
= 18.
=18.
Dichanthelium wilcoxianum
Dichanthelium ovale
Dichanthelium wilcoxianum grows in dry prairies, especially in sandy or gravelly openings. It is restricted to the Flora region. The primary panicles, which are produced from mid-May to early June, are partially open-pollinated; the secondary panicles, which are produced in June, and occasionally also in September, are cleistogamous.
Some specimens of Dichanthelium oligosanthes subsp. scribnerianum from the southern Great Plains that have prematurely elongating upper internodes resemble D. wilcoxianum, but they have greenish spikelets that are 1.7-2.4 mm wide, an orange spot at the base of the glumes, and larger basal rosettes.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Dichanthelium ovale grows in dry, open, sandy or rocky woodland borders, sand barrens, dunes, and dry prairies in southeastern Canada, the eastern United States, the West Indies, Mexico, and Central America. The four subspecies often intergrade, especially subsp. villosissimum and subsp. pseudopubescens in the southeastern United States, and subsp. villosissimum and subsp. praecocius in the western part of their range.
The growth form and certain morphological features of Dichanthelium ovale resemble those of the widespread D. laxiflorum, which usually grows in more mesic habitats. Occasional specimens exhibit traits of D. acuminatum, D. oligosanthes, and D. commutatum.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Lower sheaths and lower culm internodes with soft, spreading or retrorse, papillose-based hairs, the longer hairs often longer than 4 mm long; spikelets 1.8-2.5 mm long. | → 2 |
2. Spikelets 2.1-2.5 mm long; culms usually more than 1 mm thick, stiff; largest blades usually 6-10 mm wide | subsp. villosissimum |
2. Spikelets 1.8-2.1 mm long; culms usually less than 1 mm thick, wiry; largest blades usually 2-6 mm wide | subsp. praecocius |
1. Lower sheaths and lower culm internodes with ascending or appressed, non-papillose-based hairs shorter than 4 mm or nearly glabrous; spikelets 2.1-3 mm long. | → 2 |
3. Spikelets 2.5-3 mm long; basal blades with long hairs on or near the margins and bases | subsp. ovale |
3. Spikelets 2.1-2.6 mm long; basal blades usually without long hairs on or near the margins and bases | subsp. pseudopubescens |
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