Flora of North America species comparison

(5)10-40 cm.

5-40 cm, erect or decumbent at the base, glabrous.

open for at least 1/3 their length, glabrous, margins membranous and continuous with the ligules;

auricles absent;

ligules membranous, acute, glabrous, apices somewhat erose;

blades flat, glabrous.

2-8 cm long, 0.9-3.2 cm wide;

branches 1-2 cm, with a few scattered, whitish hairs.

panicles, dense, secund, golden-yellow to purplish;

primary branches appressed to the rachis;

secondary branches capillary, smooth, glabrous, flexuous, terminating in 1-4 fascicles of pedicellate spikelets, strongly bent below the junction with the fascicle base;

pedicels of spikelets in each fascicle fused at the base, strigose.

dimorphic, the terminal spikelet of each fascicle fertile, the others sterile;

disarticulation at the base of the fused pedicels.

1-2 mm.

ovoid or ellipsoid, adhering to the lemmas and/or paleas.

3-10 mm;

blades 2.5-11(20) cm long, 2.5-7.5 mm wide.

spikelets 2.6-4.2 mm;

lower rachilla internodes about 1 mm, glabrous;

upper rachilla internodes 1.4-2.2(2.6) mm, puberulent or glabrous, sometimes scabrous;

glumes 2.6-4.2 mm, bisexual florets 2.4-3 mm, minutely bifid, teeth shorter than 0.2 mm, apices awned, awns 5-7.2 mm;

anthers 0.4-0.7 mm;

rudimentary florets 0.4-0.6 mm, awns 4-5(7) mm.

spikelets terete to somewhat laterally compressed, with 2 florets, 1 bisexual, the other a rudiment, borne on long rachilla internodes;

calluses short, blunt, glabrous;

glumes narrow, acuminate or short-awned, 1-veined;

bisexual lemmas scarcely veined, each with a delicate, straight, subapical awn;

paleas equal or subequal to the lemmas;

lodicules 2, glabrous, toothed;

anthers 3;

ovaries glabrous;

rudimentary florets highly reduced lemmas, each with a delicate, straight awn.

spikelets 6-9 mm;

lemmas 1-2 mm.

spikelets linear, laterally compressed;

florets 5-10;

glumes similar to those of the fertile spikelets;

lemmas imbricate, obtuse, unawned;

paleas absent.

= 7.

= 14.