Leymus mollis
Leymus arenarius
American dunegrass, American lyme grass, dune wildrye, dunegrass, elyme des sables d'amerique, sea lyme-grass, seigle de mer
elyme des sables d'Europe, European dunegrass, lymegrass, sand ryegrass
12-170 cm tall, 3-6 mm thick, usually densely pubescent below the spikes for 10-40+ mm.
50-150 cm tall, (2)3-6 mm thick, usually glabrous throughout, occasionally pubescent distally to 5 mm below the spike.
exceeded by the spikes;
auricles to 0.7 mm;
ligules 0.2-2.5 mm;
blades 10-94 cm long, 3-15 mm wide, adaxial surfaces scabridulous to scabrous, 20-40-veined, veins subequal, prominently ribbed, closely spaced.
exceeded by the spikes;
ligules 0.3-2.5 mm;
blades 3-11 mm wide, with 15-40 adaxial veins.
5-34 cm long, 10-20 mm wide, with 3-33 nodes, usually with 2 spikelets per node;
internodes 4.5-9.5 mm, surfaces and edges similar, hairs on the surfaces 0.1-0.5 mm, on the edges to 0.7 mm.
12-35 cm long, 15-25 mm wide, usually with 2 spikelets per node;
internodes 8-12 mm, surfaces glabrous, edges ciliate.
15-34 mm, with 3-6 florets.
12-30 mm, with 2-5 florets.
9-34 mm long, 1.5-4 mm wide, lanceolate, tapering from midlength or above, flat or rounded on the back, flexible, usually strigillose to pilose or villous, rarely almost glabrous, the central portion scarcely thicker than the margins, 3(5)-veined at midlength, apices acute;
lemmas 11-20 mm, densely hairy, hairs 0.5-1 mm, soft, apices acute, unawned;
anthers 4-9 mm, dehiscent.
12-30 mm long, 2-3.5 mm wide, lanceolate, tapering from below midlength, stiff, glabrous towards the base and usually distally, sometimes pubescent distally, the central portion thicker than the margins, 3(5)-veined at midlength, keeled or rounded over the midvein, midveins and sometimes the margins with hairs to about 1.3 mm, apices acuminate;
lemmas 12-25 mm, densely villous, hairs 0.3-0.7 mm, 5-7-veined, acute, occasionally awned, awns to 3 mm;
anthers 6-9 mm, dehiscent.
= 56.
Leymus mollis
Leymus arenarius
Leymus mollis is native to Asia and North America. It is treated here as having two very similar subspecies that have somewhat different ranges. The subspecies are sometimes treated as separate species, but they may be little more than environmentally induced variants. Both subspecies grow primarily on coastal beaches, close to the high tide line, and along some inland waterways, particularly in the arctic. Reports of L. ajanensis (V.N. Vassil.) Tzvelev from North America are based on specimens of L. mollis (D. Murray, University of Alaska, pers. comm. 2006).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Leymus arenarius is native to Europe. It has become established in sandy habitats around the Great Lakes and the coast of Greenland. It has also been found at a few other widely scattered locations. It is sometimes cultivated, forming large, attractive, blue-green clumps, but its tendency to spread may be undesirable.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Spikes 12-34 cm long, with 12-33 nodes; basal blades 5-15 mm wide; culms 50-170 cm tall | subsp. mollis |
1. Spikes 5-13(16) cm long, with 3-14 nodes; basal blades 3-8 mm wide; culms 12-70 cm tall | subsp. villosissimus |
BC
OR
WA
CalFlora
Flora NW
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IL Wildflowers
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