Melica ciliata
Melica geyeri
ciliate melic, hairy melic, hairy melicgrass, silky melic, silky-spike melic
Geyer's onion grass
20-60(100) cm, not forming corms.
65-200 cm, glabrous, forming corms, corms sessile on the rhizomes;
internodes smooth.
glabrous or shortly and sparsely pubescent;
ligules 1-4 mm;
blades 7-15 cm long, 1-4 mm wide, usually involute.
scabridulous to scabrous, sometimes sparsely pilose, particularly at the throat and collar;
ligules 0.8-5 mm;
blades 2-8 mm wide, abaxial surfaces scabridulous, adaxial surfaces with hairs.
4-8(25) cm, narrowly cylindrical, lax, pale;
branches 1.5-4 cm, appressed to ascending, with 3-12(15) spikelets;
pedicels sharply bent below the spikelets;
disarticulation below the glumes.
10-30 cm;
branches 3-11 cm, divergent to reflexed, flexuous, with 1-6 spikelets;
pedicels straight;
disarticulation above the glumes.
6-8 mm, with 1 bisexual floret, sometimes purple-tinged.
8-24 mm, with 4-7 bisexual florets, base of the distal florets exposed at anthesis;
rachilla internodes 2-3 mm, not swollen when fresh, not wrinkled when dry.
usually less than 1/2 the length of the spikelets;
lower glumes 3.5-7 mm long, 1.5-2 mm wide, 5-9-veined;
upper glumes 5-11 mm long, 2-2.5 mm wide, 5-11-veined;
lemmas 7.5-12.5 mm, glabrous or scabrous, 7-veined, veins inconspicuous, apices rounded to acute, sometimes toothed, unawned or awned, awns to 2 mm;
paleas about as long as the lemmas;
anthers 3, 2.5-4 mm;
rudiments 3-7 mm, tapering, resembling the bisexual florets.
4-6 mm long, 1.5-2.5 mm wide, ovate, 1-5-veined, acute;
upper glumes 6-8 mm long, about 1.5 mm wide, lanceolate, acute to acuminate;
lemmas 4-6.5 mm, lanceolate, 7-9-veined, papillose, margins and marginal veins pubescent, hairs 3.5-5 mm, not twisted;
rudiments 1-1.7 mm, ovoid, not resembling the bisexual florets.
3-4 mm.
=18, 36.
=18.
Melica ciliata
Melica geyeri
Melica ciliata is grown as an ornamental in North America and is not known to have escaped. It is native to Europe, northern Africa, and southwestern Asia, where it grows on damp to somewhat dry soils.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Melica geyeri grows to 2000 m, primarily in dry, open woods, in Oregon and California. Its large size and open panicle distinguish M. geyeri from most other North American species of Melica.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Lemma apices awned, awns 0.5-2 mm long | var. aristulata |
1. Lemma apices unawned | var. geyeri |
WA
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
CA
OR
