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Lehmann lovegrass, Lehmann's love grass

long lovegrass

Habit Plants perennial; cespitose, forming innovations at the basal nodes, without glands. Plants perennial; cespitose, with innovations, without rhizomes, not glandular.
Culms

(20)40-80 cm, erect, commonly geniculate, sometimes rooting at the lower nodes, glabrous, lower portions sometimes scabridulous.

28-60 cm, erect to decumbent, glabrous below the nodes.

Sheaths

sometimes shortly silky pilose basally, hairs less than 2 mm, apices sparsely hairy, hairs to 3 mm;

ligules 0.3-0.5 mm, ciliate;

blades 2-12 cm long, 1-3 mm wide, flat to involute, glabrous, abaxial surfaces sometimes scabridulous, adaxial surfaces scabridulous.

glabrous, apices sparsely hairy, hairs to 2 mm;

ligules 0.3-0.4 mm;

blades 5-20 cm long, 0.8-3 mm wide, flat to involute, abaxial surfaces glabrous, adaxial surfaces scabridulous, occasionally hairy near the base.

Panicles

7-18 cm long, 2-8 cm wide, oblong, open;

primary branches 1-8 cm, appressed or diverging to 40° from the rachises;

pulvini glabrous;

pedicels 0.5-4 mm, diverging or appressed, flexible.

terminal, (5)8-20(22) cm long, 1-3.5 cm wide, spicate to narrowly ovate, branches condensed into glomerate lobes;

primary branches 0.8-3 cm, appressed or diverging up to 90° from the rachises, spikelet-bearing to the base;

pulvini glabrous;

pedicels 0.2-1.3 mm, flattened, mostly appressed, all shorter than the spikelets.

Spikelets

5-12(14) mm long, 0.8-1.2 mm wide, linear-lanceolate, plumbeous to stramineous, with 4-12(14) florets;

disarticulation irregular to basipetal, paleas usually persistent.

3-7 mm long, 1.8-2.4 mm wide, linear-lanceolate, stramineous with a reddish-purple tinge, with 8-18 florets;

disarticulation acropetal, glumes first, then the lemmas, paleas persistent.

Glumes

oblong to lanceolate, membranous;

lower glumes 1-1.5 mm;

upper glumes 1.3-2 mm;

lemmas 1.5-1.7 mm, ovate, membranous, lateral veins inconspicuous, apices acute to obtuse;

paleas 1.4-1.7 mm, obtuse;

anthers 3, 0.6-0.9 mm, yellowish.

subequal, 1.2-2 mm, narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, membranous;

lemmas 1.5-2.2 mm, lanceolate to ovate, leathery, greenish, lateral veins conspicuous, apices acute;

paleas 1.1-1.7 mm, hyaline, narrower than the lemmas, keels ciliate, cilia to 0.2 mm, apices obtuse to acute;

anthers 2, 0.2-0.3 mm, purplish.

Caryopses

0.6-0.8 mm, ellipsoid to obovoid, dorsally compressed, sometimes with a shallow adaxial groove, smooth, translucent, mostly light brown, embryo region dark brown with a greenish ring.

0.4-0.5 mm, ovoid, not grooved, smooth, light brown.

2n

= 40, 60.

= unknown.

Eragrostis lehmanniana

Eragrostis elongata

Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; NM; OK; TX; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; SC; HI
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Eragrostis lehmanniana is native to southern Africa, where it grows in sandy, savannah habitats. It was introduced for erosion control in the southern United States, where it often displaces native species. In the Flora region, it grows in sandy flats, along roadsides, on calcareous slopes, and in disturbed areas, at 200-1830 m. It is commonly found in association with Larrea tridentata, Opuntia, Quercus, Juniperus, and Bouteloua gracilis.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Eragrostis elongata is native to southeastern Asia and Australia, where it grows in disturbed, sandy soils at 0-50 m. It was collected once near Washington, D.C., probably as an escape from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's experimental grass garden; it has not become established in the Flora region.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 25, p. 76. FNA vol. 25, p. 101.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Chloridoideae > tribe Cynodonteae > Eragrostis Poaceae > subfam. Chloridoideae > tribe Cynodonteae > Eragrostis
Sibling taxa
E. airoides, E. amabilis, E. atrovirens, E. bahiensis, E. barrelieri, E. capillaris, E. cilianensis, E. ciliaris, E. cumingii, E. curtipedicellata, E. curvula, E. cylindriflora, E. echinochloidea, E. elliottii, E. elongata, E. erosa, E. frankii, E. gangetica, E. hirsuta, E. hypnoides, E. intermedia, E. japonica, E. lugens, E. lutescens, E. mexicana, E. minor, E. obtusiflora, E. palmeri, E. pectinacea, E. pilosa, E. plana, E. polytricha, E. prolifera, E. refracta, E. reptans, E. scaligera, E. secundiflora, E. sessilispica, E. setifolia, E. silveana, E. spectabilis, E. spicata, E. superba, E. swallenii, E. tef, E. trichodes, E. trichophora, E. unioloides
E. airoides, E. amabilis, E. atrovirens, E. bahiensis, E. barrelieri, E. capillaris, E. cilianensis, E. ciliaris, E. cumingii, E. curtipedicellata, E. curvula, E. cylindriflora, E. echinochloidea, E. elliottii, E. erosa, E. frankii, E. gangetica, E. hirsuta, E. hypnoides, E. intermedia, E. japonica, E. lehmanniana, E. lugens, E. lutescens, E. mexicana, E. minor, E. obtusiflora, E. palmeri, E. pectinacea, E. pilosa, E. plana, E. polytricha, E. prolifera, E. refracta, E. reptans, E. scaligera, E. secundiflora, E. sessilispica, E. setifolia, E. silveana, E. spectabilis, E. spicata, E. superba, E. swallenii, E. tef, E. trichodes, E. trichophora, E. unioloides
Synonyms E. diandra
Name authority Nees (Willd.) Jacq.
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