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bulbous oniongrass, onion grass, western onion grass

nodding melica, rock melic, rock melicgrass, rock oniongrass

Habit Plants loosely cespitose, rhizomatous. Plants densely cespitose, not rhizomatous.
Culms

29-100 cm, forming corms, corms almost sessile on the connecting rhizomes;

internodes scabridulous above the nodes.

9-85 cm, not forming corms;

basal internodes often thickened;

internodes smooth.

Sheaths

usually scabridulous, sometimes sparsely pilose;

ligules 2-6 mm;

blades 1.5-5 mm wide, abaxial surfaces scabridulous, adaxial surfaces with hairs.

scabridulous;

ligules 2.5-5 mm;

blades 1.5-5 mm wide, abaxial surfaces glabrous, scabridulous, adaxial surfaces sometimes strigose, sometimes glabrous or scabridulous.

Panicles

7-30 cm;

branches 2-6.5 cm, appressed, usually straight, with 1-5 spikelets;

pedicels straight;

disarticulation above the glumes.

3-30 cm;

branches 0.5-10 cm, appressed, with 1-5 spikelets;

pedicels sharply bent below the spikelets;

disarticulation below the glumes.

Spikelets

6-24 mm, with 4-7 bisexual florets, base of the distal florets concealed at anthesis;

rachilla internodes 1-2 mm, not swollen when fresh, not wrinkled when dry.

6-23 mm long, 5-13 mm wide, broadly V-shaped when mature, with 2-4 bisexual florets;

rachilla internodes 1.8-2.1 mm.

Glumes

from (1/2)2/3 as long as to equaling the spikelets;

lower glumes 5.5-10.5 mm long, 2-3 mm wide, 3-5-veined;

upper glumes 6-14 mm long, 2.3-3.5 mm wide, 5-7-veined;

lemmas 6-12 mm, glabrous, smooth or scabrous, 7-11-veined, veins prominent, apices emarginate to acute, unawned;

paleas about 3/4 the length of the lemmas;

anthers 3, 1.5-4 mm;

rudiments 1.5-5 mm, truncate to tapering, sometimes resembling the bisexual florets in shape.

Lower glumes

6-16 mm long, 3.5-5 mm wide, 4-7-veined;

upper glumes 6-18 mm long, 3-5 mm wide, 5-9-veined;

lemmas 6-16 mm, glabrous, scabridulous, 5-9-veined, veins inconspicuous, apices acute, unawned;

paleas 1/2 - 3/4 the length of the lemmas;

anthers 1-3 mm;

rudiments 2-7 mm, resembling the lower florets, acute to acuminate.

Caryopses

4-5 mm.

2n

=18.

= 18.

Melica bulbosa

Melica stricta

Distribution
from FNA
CA; CO; ID; MT; NV; OR; SD; TX; UT; WA; WY; BC; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; NV; OR; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Melica bulbosa grows from 1370-3400 m, mostly in open woods on dry, well-drained slopes and along streams. It is restricted to the western half of the Flora region. Two records from Texas, in Jeff Davis and Sutton counties, have not been verified.

Melica bulbosa differs from M. spectabilis in its sessile corm and longer glumes. In addition, in M. bulbosa the spikelets have purplish bands which appear to be concentrated towards the apices; in M. spectabilis the bands appear more regularly spaced. It differs from M. californica in its more narrowly acute spikelets, more strongly colored lemmas, and lack of corms, and from M. fugax in not having swollen rachilla internodes.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Melica stricta grows from 1200-3350 m on rocky, often dry slopes, sometimes in alpine habitats. Its range extends from Oregon and California to Utah. Boyle (1945) recognized two varieties, more on their marked geographical separation than on their morphological divergence.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Paleas about 3/4 the length of the lemmas; anthers 2-3 mm long
var. albicaulis
1. Paleas about 1/2 the length of the lemmas; anthers 1-2 mm long
var. stricta
Source FNA vol. 24, p. 91. FNA vol. 24, p. 97.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Pooideae > tribe Meliceae > Melica Poaceae > subfam. Pooideae > tribe Meliceae > Melica
Sibling taxa
M. altissima, M. aristata, M. californica, M. ciliata, M. frutescens, M. fugax, M. geyeri, M. harfordii, M. imperfecta, M. montezumae, M. mutica, M. nitens, M. porteri, M. smithii, M. spectabilis, M. stricta, M. subulata, M. torreyana
M. altissima, M. aristata, M. bulbosa, M. californica, M. ciliata, M. frutescens, M. fugax, M. geyeri, M. harfordii, M. imperfecta, M. montezumae, M. mutica, M. nitens, M. porteri, M. smithii, M. spectabilis, M. subulata, M. torreyana
Subordinate taxa
M. stricta var. albicaulis, M. stricta var. stricta
Synonyms M. bulbosa var. intonsa, M. bulbosa var. inflata, Bromelica bulbosa
Name authority Geyer ex Porter & J.M. Coult. Bol.
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