Glyceria maxima
Glyceria notata
English watergrass, giant mannagrass, glycerie aquatique, reed manna grass, rough mannagrass, tall glyceria, tall mannagrass
mark glyceria
60-250 cm tall, 6-12 mm thick, erect.
25-80 cm, rooting at the nodes.
scabridulous, keeled;
ligules 1.2-6 mm, rounded or with a central point, ligules of the lower leaves thick, stiff, and opaque, ligules of the upper leaves thinner and translucent;
blades 30-60 cm long, 6-20 mm wide, both surfaces smooth or adaxial surfaces scabridulous.
usually scabridulous or hirtellous;
ligules 2-8 mm;
blades 5-30 cm long, 3-11(14) mm wide, abaxial surfaces scabrous, adaxial surfaces sometimes scabridulous to scabrous, sometimes sparsely hairy, sometimes papillose.
15-45 cm long, to 30 cm wide, open;
branches 8-20 cm, lax, strongly divergent or drooping at maturity, scabridulous, primary branches with 50+ spikelets;
pedicels 0.8-10 mm.
10-45 cm;
branches 2-5 per node, eventually widely spreading;
branches to 12 cm, with 5-15(19) spikelets;
pedicels 1-6 mm.
5-12 mm long, 2-3.5 mm wide, somewhat laterally compressed, oval in side view, with 4-10 florets.
10-25 mm long, 1.5-3 mm wide, cylindrical and terete except slightly laterally compressed at anthesis, rectangular in side view, with 7-16 florets.
unequal, usually the midvein of 1 or both reaching to the apices;
lower glumes 2-3 mm;
upper glumes 3-4 mm, longer than wide;
rachilla internodes 0.5-1 mm;
lemmas 3-4 mm, 7-veined, veins scabridulous, apices broadly acute to rounded, slightly prow-shaped;
paleas subequal to the lemmas, lengths more than 3 times widths, keels not winged, ciliate, tips not strongly incurved, curved to broadly notched between the keels;
anthers 3, (1)1.2-2 mm.
obtuse to rounded;
lower glumes 1-2.5 mm;
upper glumes 2.5-4.5 mm;
lemmas 3.5-5 mm, the submarginal veins often longer than those adjacent to the midvein, veins scabridulous, smooth or scabridulous between the veins, apices truncate to rounded, crenulate;
paleas from slightly shorter to slightly longer than the lemmas, keels winged distally, apices bifid, teeth about 0.2 mm;
anthers 0.8-1.5 mm.
1.5-2 mm.
1.5-2.5 mm.
= 60.
= 40.
Glyceria maxima
Glyceria notata
Glyceria maxima is native to Eurasia. It grows in wet areas, including shallow water, at scattered locations in the flora region. It is an excellent fodder grass, and may have been planted deliberately at one time (Dore and McNeill 1980). At some sites, the species appears to be spreading, largely vegetatively. It is easily confused with large specimens of G. grandis, but differs in its firmer, more prow-tipped lemmas as well as its larger lemmas and usually larger anthers.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Glyceria notata is a Eurasian species that has been reported from scattered locations in the Flora region; the reports have not been verified. In Europe, G. notata grows in rich, organic, wet soils, often near G. fluitans, with which it hybridizes. It is more tolerant of trampling than G. fluitans.
There is no single morphological characteristic that separates Glyceria notata from G. septentrionalis and G. leptostachya. It more frequently has lemmas with short veins adjacent to the midvein than the other two species, is more frequently smooth between the veins, more frequently has scabridulous leaf sheath, and tends to have more spikelets on its branches. The limited cpDNA data indicate that the three are distinct taxa (Whipple et al. [in press]). An intensive examination of the three species is needed.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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