Flora of North America species comparison

20-70(112), often decumbent and rooting at the lower nodes.

keeled, usually sparsely pubescent with papillose-based hairs;

ligules 0.5-2.6 mm;

blades 2-11(14) cm long, 3-8(12) mm wide, usually with papillose-based hairs on both surfaces, sometimes glabrous.

with 4-13 spikelike primary branches, these subdigitate or on rachises to 6 cm;

primary branches 3-30 cm long, 0.7-1.5 mm wide, flattened and winged, wings more than 1/2 as wide as the midribs, lower and middle portion of the branches bearing spikelets in unequally pedicellate pairs, pedicels not adnate to the branches;

secondary branches rarely present.

homomorphic, 1.7-3.4 mm long, 0.7-1.1 mm wide.

glumes 0.2-0.4 mm long, veinless;

upper glumes 0.9-2 mm, 1/3 – 1/2 as long as the spikelets, 3-veined, pubescent on the margins;

lower lemmas usually exceeded or equaled by the upper florets, sometimes exceeding them but by no more than 0.2 mm, glabrous, 7-veined, lateral (or all) veins scabrous throughout or smooth on the lower (1/3)1/2 and scabrous distally, 3 middle veins usually widely spaced, remaining veins on each side close together and near the margins;

upper lemmas 1.7-3 mm, yellow or gray, frequently purple-tinged when immature, often becoming brown at maturity;

anthers 0.5-0.9 mm.

= 36, 28, 34, 54.