Melica mutica
Melica altissima
oniongrass, two-flower melic, twoflower melicgrass
Siberian melic, Siberian melicgrass, tall melic
45-100 cm, not forming corms;
internodes sometimes scabridulous above the nodes.
60-250 cm, not forming corms, scabrous below the panicles.
glabrous or pilose;
ligules 0.5-1.5 mm;
blades 1.8-6 mm wide, abaxial surfaces glabrous, scabridulous, adaxial surfaces with hairs.
retrorsely scabridulous;
ligules 3-5 mm;
blades to 20 cm long, 5-15 mm wide, flat, lax.
4-25 cm;
branches 3.5-6 cm, appressed to spreading, straight, with 2-5 spikelets;
pedicels sharply bent below the spikelets;
disarticulation below the glumes.
10-20 cm long, 1-2(5) cm wide, cylindrical, pale or purplish;
branches about 3 cm, strongly ascending to appressed, often with 15+ spikelets;
pedicels sharply bent below the spikelets;
disarticulation below the glumes.
6-11 mm, with (1)2(4) bisexual florets, floret apices at about the same level;
rachilla internodes 1.5-1.7 mm.
7-11 mm, with 1-2(3) bisexual florets.
subequal in length and similar in shape, 7-10.5 mm long, 3-4 mm wide, glabrous, ovate-elliptic, obtuse to acute, ivory or purple, 7-veined;
lemmas 7-11 mm, glabrous, scabridulous, 9-13-veined, scarious, apices acute;
paleas about 2/3 the length of the lemmas;
rudiments 2.5-3 mm, pyriform.
4.5-8 mm long, 3-4 mm wide, 5-7-veined;
upper glumes 5-9 mm long, 2.5-3.5 mm wide, 5-6-veined;
lemmas 6-11 mm, glabrous or scabrous, indurate, 9-11-veined, veins prominent, apices rounded to acute, unawned;
paleas about 3/4 the length of the lemmas;
anthers 1-3 mm;
rudiments 2-3 mm, clublike, not resembling the bisexual florets, at a sharp angle to the rachilla.
about 3 mm.
= 18.
= 18.
Melica mutica
Melica altissima
Melica mutica grows in moist or dry areas in open woods and thickets, from Iowa and Texas east to Maryland and Florida. It is unique among the North American species in having a clublike rudiment at a sharp angle to the rachilla.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Melica altissima is native to Eurasia. It is grown as an ornamental in North America and is reported to have escaped and become established in Oklahoma and Ontario. In its native region, it grows on the moist soils of shrubby thickets and forest edges, and on rocky slopes. Plants with dark purple glumes and lemmas can be called M. altissima var. atropurpurea Host.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
IL Wildflowers
LA Plants
MD Biodiversity
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
