Flora of North America species comparison

30-150 (200) cm, glabrous or pubescent, sometimes scabrous.

(8)10-35 (50) cm, erect, smooth, glabrous or sparsely pubescent below the inflorescence.

closed for less than 1/3 their length, persistent, glabrous or pilose, smooth or scabrous, sometimes scabrous or pilose only distally or on the distal margins;

collars usually densely pubescent or with a few hairs at the margins, sometimes glabrous;

ligules 0.2-5 mm, usually ciliate, abaxial surfaces puberulent;

blades 1-6.5 mm wide, conduplicate, convolute, or flat, 0.5-2(2.5) mm in diameter when convolute, deciduous, abaxial surfaces scabrous or smooth, glabrous or the bases pubescent, adaxial surfaces puberulent to pubescent, veins 9-15(17), ribs (3)5-15(17);

abaxial sclerenchyma forming more or less continuous bands, sometimes reduced to small strands;

adaxial sclerenchyma sometimes present;

girders or pillars present at most veins.

closed for about 1/2 their length, glabrous or pilose, persistent;

collars glabrous;

ligules 0.1-0.5 mm;

blades 0.4-0.8(1) mm in diameter, conduplicate, sometimes glaucous, abaxial surfaces glabrous, pubescent, or pilose, all conditions often present on the same plant, adaxial surfaces scabrous or pubescent, veins 5-7, ribs 3, 1 distinct and 2 indistinct;

abaxial sclerenchyma in 3 strands, 2 at the margins and 1 opposite the midvein, strands as wide or wider than the veins;

adaxial sclerenchyma absent;

flag leaf blades 0.3-2 cm.

10-25(30) cm, open, with (1)2(4) branches per node;

branches spreading and lax.

1.5-4(5.5) cm, panicles or racemes, contracted, with 1(2) branches per node;

branches erect, lower branches with 1-2 spikelets.

8-18(20) mm, borne towards the ends of the branches, with 3-6(8) florets.

(5)7-9(11) mm, with (2)3-5(6) florets.

lanceolate, glabrous or sparsely scabrous at the apices;

lower glumes (4)4.5-6.7(8) mm;

upper glumes (5)6-10 mm;

lemmas (7)7.5-11 mm, lanceolate, scabrous, puberulent, sometimes minutely bidentate, acute, usually awned, rarely unawned, awns (1)2-3(4) mm;

paleas shorter than to longer than the lemmas, pubescent or glabrous on the margins, intercostal region usually puberulent distally;

anthers (3)4-7.5(8.5) mm;

ovary apices densely pubescent.

exceeded by the upper florets, ovate to lanceolate, glabrous, sometimes scabrous distally;

lower glumes 2.5-3.4 mm;

upper glumes 3-4.3 mm;

lemmas 4-5.5 mm, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, glabrous, sometimes scabrous towards the apices, awns 0.8-2.6(3) mm, terminal;

paleas about as long as the lemmas, intercostal region smooth or scabrous distally;

anthers (2)2.4-3.5 mm;

ovary apices glabrous.

= 56.

= 14.