Flora of North America species comparison

80-160 cm, erect or spreading, sometimes rooting at the lowest nodes, often developing short axillary flowering shoots at most upper nodes when mature;

lower nodes glabrous or puberulent;

upper nodes glabrous.

1-4.6 m tall, to 2 cm thick, geniculate or long-prostrate and rooting at the lower nodes, often floating distally;

lower and upper nodes glabrous.

glabrous;

ligules absent;

blades 1-27 cm long, 0.8-30 mm wide.

mostly glabrous, but usually ciliate at the throat;

ligules present on the lower leaves, 1-5 mm, of stiff hairs, reduced or absent on the upper leaves;

blades 8-75 cm long, 5-30 mm wide.

of primary culms 7-35 cm, rachises and branches glabrous or hispid, hairs to 3 mm, papillose-based;

primary branches 2-8 cm, usually spreading and rather distant, often with secondary branches.

15-40 cm, nodes and internodes scabrous;

primary branches 2-7.5 cm, solitary to fascicled, erect or ascending, simple or compound, nodes and internodes glabrous or hispid, hairs to 4 mm, papillose-based.

2.5-5 mm, disarticulating at maturity, usually purple or streaked with purple, usually hispid, hairs papillose-based.

2.5-4 mm long, 1-1.8 mm wide, disarticulating at maturity, finely pubescent or glabrous, greenish to purple at maturity.

about as long as the spikelets;

lower florets sterile;

lower lemmas unawned or awned, awns to 16 mm;

lower paleas well-developed;

upper lemmas broadly obovoid or orbicular, narrowing to an acute or acuminate coriaceous portion that extends into the membranous tip, boundary between the coriaceous and membranous portions not marked by minute hairs;

anthers 0.4-1.1 mm.

1.2-2.5 mm, broadly obovoid or spheroid, yellowish;

embryos 1.4-2 mm, 80-91% as long as the caryopses.

about 2 mm.

florets staminate;

lower lemmas unawned, acute to acuminate or long cuspidate;

anthers of lower florets 1-1.5 mm;

upper lemmas apiculate to long cuspidate.

= 36.

= 54, 72.