Glyceria melicaria
Glyceria alnasteretum
glycerie melicaire, melic mannagrass, northeastern manna grass
Aleutian glyceria
50-100 cm tall, 3-5 mm thick, erect.
60-90 cm tall, 2.5-4 mm thick, erect.
smooth, not or only weakly keeled;
ligules 0.2-0.9 mm, translucent, rounded to truncate;
blades 25-40 cm long, 2-7 mm wide, abaxial surfaces smooth, adaxial surfaces scabridulous.
smooth, not keeled;
ligules 2-3 mm, rounded to truncate;
blades 5-20 cm long, 3-7 mm wide, abaxial surfaces smooth, adaxial surfaces scabrous, apices acute.
15-25 cm long, 0.8-1.5 cm wide, linear, nodding;
branches 5-9 cm, appressed, scarcely surpassing the node above, with 30-60+ spikelets;
pedicels 0.5-2 mm.
15-22 cm long, 12-16 cm wide, open, pyramidal, erect to nodding;
branches 8-10 cm, lower branches widely divergent to drooping.
3.5-5 mm long, 1-2.5 mm wide, laterally compressed, oval in side view, with 3-4 florets.
7-9 mm long, 3-4.5 mm wide, with 5-8 florets.
lanceolate, veins terminating below the apices, apices acute;
lower glumes 1.3-2.4 mm;
upper glumes 1.7-3 mm;
rachilla internodes 0.4-0.6 mm;
lemmas 1.9-2.8 mm, smooth or scabridulous, 5-7-veined, veins raised, apices acute, prow-shaped;
paleas slightly shorter to slightly longer than the lemmas, lengths 2.5-4 times widths, keels well developed, not winged, tips incurved, narrowly notched between the keels;
anthers 2, 0.3-0.5 mm.
unequal, lanceolate, acute;
lower glumes 2-3.5 mm;
upper glumes 2.5-3.5 mm, longer than wide;
lemmas 3-5.5 mm, 7-veined, obtuse to acute;
paleas shorter than or subequal to the lemmas, keels not winged, apices not strongly incurved, emarginate between the keels;
anthers 3, 0.7-1.2 mm.
1-1.5 mm;
hila subequal to the caryopses.
not seen.
= 40.
= 20.
Glyceria melicaria
Glyceria alnasteretum
Glyceria melicaria grows in swamps and wet soils. Its range extends from southeastern Ontario east to Nova Scotia, south to Illinois and the northeastern United States and, in the Appalachian Mountains, to northern Georgia. Glyceria xgatineauensis Bowden is a sterile hybrid between G. melicaria and G. striata. For further comments, see p. 77.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Glyceria alnasteretum is included in this treatment with some hesitation, based on van Schaack 724 (W'l'LJ 152646) and van Schaack 887 (MO 1710727), both collected at Signal Point, Attu Island, Alaska in 1945. The above description is based on Komarov (1963) and Koyama (1987), modified to reflect the wider panicles and longer glumes and lemmas of the van Schaack specimens. The difference in habitat is troubling. The van Schaack specimens were found "in a beachside meadow" and "near beach." Koyama describes the habitat of G. alnasteretum as "wet meadows and marshes at high altitudes as well as subarctic zone" (p. 114). Nevertheless, the van Schaack specimens fit the description of G. alnasteretum better than any other taxon in this treatment. Clearly, further investigation is called for; it should include plants from both sides of the Bering Strait.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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