Flora of North America species comparison

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.

15-55 cm tall, 0.2-0.8 mm thick, erect from geniculate bases;

nodes glabrous;

internodes mostly glabrous, or the lowest internodes sparsely appressed-pubescent basally;

fall phase branching sparingly from the lower and midculm nodes.

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.

3-4;

sheaths much shorter than the internodes, prominently veined, mostly glabrous, margins occasionally ciliate, ligules 0.2-0.7 mm, of hairs, without adjacent pseudoligules;

blades 2-6 cm long, 1.5-6 mm wide, ascending, distant, flat, relatively thick, glabrous on both surfaces or the abaxial surfaces minutely puberulent, bases rounded, margins more or less prominently whitish-scabridulous, blades of the flag leaves much shorter than those of the lower leaves.

2.4-3.2 mm long, 0.7-1.2 mm wide, ellipsoid to obovoid, often reddish throughout, short-pubescent.

1.3-1.7 mm long, less than 1 mm wide, ellipsoid, often purplish, densely puberulent, obtuse or subacute.

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.

usually less than 1/4 as long as the spikelets, broadly acute or obtuse;

upper glumes and lower lemmas subequal, or the glumes slightly shorter, exceeded by the upper florets;

lower florets sterile;

upper florets 1.3-1.6 mm, ellipsoid, 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 1-5 cm, ovate to lanceolate.

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 3-6 cm, nearly as wide as long, long-exserted, dense;

branches wiry, spreading to ascending, usually scabridulous.

= 18.

= 18.