Flora of North America species comparison

50-100 cm, glabrous, somewhat glaucous;

nodes usually exposed.

(3)10-15 (18) cm, more than twice as tall as the vegetative shoot leaves, erect, glabrous, sometimes slightly scabrous below the inflorescences.

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 about 1/2 their length, glabrous, persistent;

collars glabrous;

ligules 0.3-0.5 mm;

blades (0.3)0.4-0.8(1) mm in diameter, conduplicate, abaxial surfaces glabrous, adaxial surfaces scabrous or pubescent, veins 5-7(9), ribs (3)5(7);

abaxial sclerenchyma in 5-7 strands, usually less than twice as wide as high;

adaxial sclerenchyma absent;

flag leaf sheaths often somewhat inflated;

flag leaf blades 0.2-1 cm.

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

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

(0.7)1-5 cm, usually racemes;

branches erect, lower branches with 1(2) spikelets.

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

(4)5-7(8) mm, with 2-4(5) 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.

exceeded by the upper florets, ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate;

lower glumes (1.2)2.5-3.2 mm;

upper glumes (2.4)3.2-4.8 mm;

lemmas (3)4-5.5(7) mm, ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, glabrous, scabrous distally, awns (0.2)0.5-2.5 mm, terminal;

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

anthers (0.6)0.9-1.2 mm;

ovary apices glabrous.

= unknown.

= 14.