Flora of North America species comparison

50-100 cm, glabrous, somewhat glaucous;

nodes usually exposed.

(25)30-90(120) cm, glabrous or slightly scabrous;

nodes usually not exposed.

closed for less than 1/3 their length, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, shredding into fibers;

ligules 0.5-1 mm;

blades 2-10 mm wide, flat, loosely conduplicate, or involute, abaxial surfaces smooth or scabrous, glabrous or puberulent, adaxial surfaces smooth or scabrous, veins 13-35, ribs obscure;

sclerenchyma in abaxial and adaxial strands;

girders formed at most major veins.

closed for less than 1/3 their length, glabrous or scabrous, persistent, not shredding into fibers;

collars glabrous;

ligules 0.2-0.6 (1) mm;

blades deciduous, 2-4 mm wide, convolute, conduplicate, sometimes flat, 1-2.5 mm in diameter when conduplicate, yellow-green to dark green, abaxial surfaces scabrous, adaxial surfaces glabrous or pubescent, smooth or scabrous, veins 7-15(17), ribs 5-9;

abaxial sclerenchyma in strands about as wide as the adjacent veins;

adaxial sclerenchyma present;

girders associated with the major veins.

(8)10-30(40) cm, open, with 1-2 branches per node;

branches lax, spreading, spikelets borne towards the ends of branches.

5-16 cm, open, often secund, with 1-2(3) branches per node;

branches lax, spreading, lower branches usually recurved or reflexed, spikelets borne towards the ends of the branches.

6-11 mm, sometimes glaucous, with (2)3-5 florets.

8-14 mm, usually purple, lustrous, with 3-4(6) florets.

lanceolate, smooth or scabrous, acuminate;

lower glumes 4-7 mm;

upper glumes 5-7.5 mm;

lemmas 5-8 mm, chartaceous, lanceolate, glabrous, usually smooth, sometimes scabrous towards the apices, apices acute to acuminate, unawned, sometimes mucronate;

paleas as long as or slightly shorter than the lemmas, intercostal region puberulent distally;

anthers 2-3 mm;

ovary apices densely pubescent.

glabrous or slightly scabrous, distinctly shorter than the adjacent lemmas;

lower glumes 4-6.8(8.5) mm;

upper glumes (4.5)5.3-7.5(10) mm;

lemmas (6.5)7.5-9(12) mm, chartaceous, scabrous, at least on the veins, keeled on the lo'ver 1/2, veins 5, prominent, apices attenuate or short-awned, awns 0.2-0.7 mm;

paleas about as long as or a little shorter than the lemmas, intercostal region puberulent distally;

anthers 2.6-4.5(5) mm;

ovary apices usually sparsely pubescent, rarely glabrous.

= unknown.

= 28.