Muhlenbergia lindheimeri
Muhlenbergia arenacea
Lindheimer's muhly
ear muhly
50-150 cm, stout, erect, not rooting at the lower nodes;
internodes mostly glabrous, sometimes puberulent below the nodes.
10-30(40) cm, decumbent, terete to somewhat compressed-keeled near the base;
internodes scabridulous below the nodes.
shorter or longer than the internodes, glabrous, basal sheaths laterally compressed, keeled, not becoming spirally coiled when old;
ligules 10-35 mm, firm and brown basally, membranous distally, acuminate;
blades 25-55 cm long, 2-5 mm wide, flat or folded, firm, scabridulous abaxially, scabrous and shortly pubescent adaxially.
about 1/2 as long as the internodes, margins hyaline;
ligules 0.5-2 mm, hyaline, with lateral, 1-2 mm lobes;
blades 0.7-4(6) cm long, 0.5-1.7 mm wide, flat, occasionally folded, tapering, scabrous abaxially, strigulose adaxially, margins and midveins thickened, whitish, apices narrow, often sharp.
15-50 cm long, 0.6-3 cm wide, often purplish-tinged;
primary branches 0.5-7 cm, appressed or strongly ascending, rarely spreading as much as 20° from the rachises;
pedicels 0.5-1.2 mm, scabrous.
5-15 cm long, 4-14 cm wide, broadly ovoid, open;
primary branches 2-8 cm, capillary, straight to slightly flexuous, diverging 45-80(100)° from the rachises, never appearing fascicled, naked proximally;
pedicels 1-11 mm, usually longer than the spikelets.
2.4-3.5 mm, light grayish.
1.5-2.6 mm, occasionally with 2 florets.
equal, 2-3.5 mm, shorter than or equal to the florets, scabrous or smooth, 1-veined, obtuse to acute, occasionally bifid and the teeth to 0.3 mm, unawned, rarely mucronate, mucros less than 0.2 mm;
lemmas 2.4-3.5 mm, lanceolate, scabrous or smooth, rarely puberulent near the base, apices obtuse to acute, unawned or awned, awns to 4 mm, straight;
paleas 2.4-3.5 mm, lanceolate, obtuse;
anthers 1.1-1.5 mm, purplish.
equal, 0.9-2 mm, 1-veined, usually acute to acuminate, occasionally erose and mucronate, mucros to 0.2 mm;
lemmas 1.5-2.5 mm, lanceolate to oblong-elliptic, plumbeous to purplish, sparsely appressed-pubescent on the lower 1/2 of the margins and midveins, hairs to 0.3 mm, apices acute to obtuse, sometimes shallowly bilobed, mucronate, mucros to 0.3 mm;
paleas 1.5-2.6 mm, lanceolate, glabrous, obtuse to acute;
anthers 1-1.5 mm, yellowish to purplish.
1.2-1.6 mm, fusiform, reddish-brown.
1-1.3 mm, elliptic, brownish.
= 20, 26.
= unknown.
Muhlenbergia lindheimeri
Muhlenbergia arenacea
Muhlenbergia lindheimeri grows in sandy draws to rocky, calcareous soils, generally in open areas, at elevations of 150-500 m. It is an uncommon species throughout its range, which includes northern Mexico in addition to southern Texas, but it is also grown as an ornamental. It differs from the closely related M. longiligula in its compressed-keeled basal sheaths, grayish spikelets, and, when present, bifid glume apices.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Muhlenbergia arenacea grows in sandy flats, plains, alluvial fans, washes, depressions, and alkaline mesas in open grasslands, at elevations of 1000-2200 m. Its range extends from the southwestern United States into northern Mexico.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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