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bristly muhly, marsh muhly, muhlenbergie agglomeree, spike muhly

Navajo muhly, tough muhly

Habit Plants perennial; rhizomatous, not cespitose. Plants perennial; rhizomatous, rhizomes sometimes short and the plants loosely cespitose.
Culms

30-120 cm tall, 0.8-2.5 mm thick, erect, seldom branched above the base;

internodes dull, mostly puberulent (sometimes sparsely so), terete, rarely keeled, strigose immediately below the nodes.

10-50 cm tall, 0.4-1 mm thick, decumbent;

internodes glabrous or strigulose.

Sheaths

scabridulous, slightly keeled;

ligules 0.2-0.6 mm, membranous, truncate, lacerate-ciliolate;

blades 2-15 cm long, 2-6 mm wide, flat, usually scabrous or scabridulous, occasionally smooth.

shorter than the internodes, strigulose or glabrous, usually without necrotic spots, not becoming spirally coiled when old;

ligules 1-2 mm, membranous throughout, obtuse, strigulose or glabrous, erose or toothed, with lateral lobes, lobes less than 1.5 mm longer than the central portion;

blades 1-6 cm long, 1-2 mm wide, flat to involute, smooth or scabridulous abaxially, hirsute adaxially, usually without necrotic spots.

Panicles

1.5-12 cm long, 0.3-1.8 cm wide, lobed, dense;

primary branches 0.2-2.5 cm, appressed;

pedicels absent or to 1 mm, strigose.

4-13 cm long, 1-3(5) cm wide, not dense;

primary branches 0.5-4 cm, appressed or diverging up to 30° from the rachises, spikelet-bearing to the base;

pedicels 0.1-3 mm.

Spikelets

3-8 mm.

3.5-5 mm.

Glumes

subequal, 3-8 mm (including the awn), about 1.3-2 times longer than the lemmas, smooth or scabridulous distally, 1-veined, acuminate, awned, awns to 5 mm;

lemmas 1.9-3.1 mm, lanceolate, pubescent on the calluses, mid-veins, and margins, hairs to 1.2 mm, apices scabridulous, acuminate, unawned or awned, awns to 1 mm;

paleas 1.9-3.1 mm, lanceolate, loosely pilose between the veins, apices acuminate;

anthers 0.8-1.5 mm, yellowish.

subequal, 2-4 mm, exceeded by the florets, 1-veined, scabrous on the veins and near the apices, apices acuminate, unawned or awned, awns to 1.2 mm;

lemmas 3.5-5 mm, lanceolate, mostly purplish, veins conspicuously green, pubescent on the lower 1/3-1/2 of the midveins and margins, hairs to 1.5 mm, apices scabridulous, acuminate, awned, awns 4-12(20) mm, flexuous;

paleas 3.5-5 mm, narrow-lanceolate, intercostal region pubescent, apices acuminate, veins sometimes extending into awns to 0.5 mm;

anthers 1.3-3 mm, purple.

Caryopses

1-1.6 mm, fusiform, brown.

2-2.3 mm, fusiform, brownish.

2n

= 20.

= unknown.

Muhlenbergia glomerata

Muhlenbergia arsenei

Distribution
from FNA
CO; CT; DC; IA; ID; IL; IN; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NV; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; SD; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; LB; MB; NB; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; NM; NV; UT
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Muhlenbergia glomerata grows in meadows, marshes, bogs, alkaline fens, lake margins, stream banks, beside irrigation ditches and hot springs, and on gravelly slopes, in many different plant communities, at elevations of 30-2300 m. It is most common in southern Canada and the northeastern United States, but grows sporadically throughout the western United States. It is not known from Mexico.

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

Muhlenbergia arsenei grows among granitic boulders, on rocky slopes, limestone rock outcrops, and in arroyos, at elevations of 1400-2850 m. Its range extends from the southwestern United States into Baja California, Mexico. It flowers from August to September.

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

Source FNA vol. 25, p. 154. FNA vol. 25, p. 169.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Chloridoideae > tribe Cynodonteae > Muhlenbergia Poaceae > subfam. Chloridoideae > tribe Cynodonteae > Muhlenbergia
Sibling taxa
M. andina, M. appressa, M. arenacea, M. arenicola, M. arizonica, M. arsenei, M. asperifolia, M. brevis, M. bushii, M. californica, M. capillaris, M. crispiseta, M. curtifolia, M. cuspidata, M. depauperata, M. diversiglumis, M. dubia, M. dumosa, M. elongata, M. eludens, M. emersleyi, M. expansa, M. filiculmis, M. filiformis, M. fragilis, M. frondosa, M. glabrifloris, M. glauca, M. jonesii, M. lindheimeri, M. longiligula, M. mexicana, M. microsperma, M. minutissima, M. montana, M. palmeri, M. pauciflora, M. pectinata, M. peruviana, M. polycaulis, M. porteri, M. pungens, M. racemosa, M. ramulosa, M. repens, M. reverchonii, M. richardsonis, M. rigens, M. rigida, M. schreberi, M. sericea, M. setifolia, M. sinuosa, M. sobolifera, M. spiciformis, M. straminea, M. sylvatica, M. tenuiflora, M. tenuifolia, M. texana, M. thurberi, M. torreyana, M. torreyi, M. uniflora, M. utilis, M. villiflora, M. wrightii, M. ×curtisetosa, M. ×involuta
M. andina, M. appressa, M. arenacea, M. arenicola, M. arizonica, M. asperifolia, M. brevis, M. bushii, M. californica, M. capillaris, M. crispiseta, M. curtifolia, M. cuspidata, M. depauperata, M. diversiglumis, M. dubia, M. dumosa, M. elongata, M. eludens, M. emersleyi, M. expansa, M. filiculmis, M. filiformis, M. fragilis, M. frondosa, M. glabrifloris, M. glauca, M. glomerata, M. jonesii, M. lindheimeri, M. longiligula, M. mexicana, M. microsperma, M. minutissima, M. montana, M. palmeri, M. pauciflora, M. pectinata, M. peruviana, M. polycaulis, M. porteri, M. pungens, M. racemosa, M. ramulosa, M. repens, M. reverchonii, M. richardsonis, M. rigens, M. rigida, M. schreberi, M. sericea, M. setifolia, M. sinuosa, M. sobolifera, M. spiciformis, M. straminea, M. sylvatica, M. tenuiflora, M. tenuifolia, M. texana, M. thurberi, M. torreyana, M. torreyi, M. uniflora, M. utilis, M. villiflora, M. wrightii, M. ×curtisetosa, M. ×involuta
Synonyms M. racemosa var. cinnoides, M. glomerata var. cinnoides
Name authority (Willd.) Trin. Hitchc.
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