Muhlenbergia montana
Muhlenbergia porteri
mountain muhly
bush muhly, Porter's muhly
10-80 cm, erect, rounded near the base;
internodes glabrous.
25-100 cm tall, 0.5-1.5 mm thick, erect, geniculate, wiry, freely branched, branches stiff, geniculate, widely divergent;
internodes scabridulous throughout.
smooth or scabridulous, becoming flattened, papery, and occasionally spirally coiled when old, lower sheaths longer than the internodes;
ligules 4-14(20) mm, membranous, acute to acuminate;
blades 6-25 cm long, 1-2.5 mm wide, flat, becoming involute, scabrous abaxially, hirsute adaxially.
shorter than the internodes, glabrous;
ligules 1-2.5(4) mm, truncate, lacerate, with lateral lobes;
blades 2-8 cm long, 0.5-2 mm wide, flat or folded, smooth or scabridulous abaxially, scabridulous adaxially.
4-25 cm long, (1)2-6 cm wide, not dense;
primary branches 0.5-10 cm, appressed or diverging up to 40° from the rachises;
pedicels 0.5-6.5 mm, scabrous.
4-14 cm long, 6-15 cm wide, open, not dense, usually purple;
primary branches 1-7.5 cm, diverging 30-90° from the rachises, stiff, naked basally;
pedicels 2-13(20) mm, scabrous.
3-7 mm.
3-4.5 mm.
subequal, (1)1.5-3.2(4) mm, smooth or scabridulous distally;
lower glumes 1-veined, sometimes with a less than 1 mm awn;
upper glumes 1/3–2/3 as long as the lemmas, 3-veined, truncate to acute, 3-toothed, teeth sometimes awned, awns to 1.6 mm;
lemmas 3-4.5(7) mm, lanceolate, loosely to densely appressed-pubescent on the lower portion of the mid-veins and margins, hairs to 0.8 mm, apices acute to acuminate, awned, awns (2)6-25 mm, flexuous;
paleas 3-4.5(7) mm, lanceolate, acute to acuminate;
anthers 1.5-2.3 mm, purplish.
2-3 mm, shorter than the lemmas, 1-veined, veins scabrous, apices gradually acute to acuminate, occasionally mucronate, mucros to 0.4 mm;
lemmas 3-4.5 mm, lanceolate, purplish, appressed-pubescent on the lower 1/2 - 3/4 of the margins and midveins, apices acuminate, awned, awns 2-13 mm, straight;
paleas 3-4.5 mm, lanceolate, acuminate;
anthers 1.5-2.3 mm, purple to yellow.
1.8-2 mm, fusiform, light brown.
2-2.4 mm, oblong, compressed, yellowish-brown.
= 20, 40.
= 20, 23, 24, 40.
Muhlenbergia montana
Muhlenbergia porteri
Muhlenbergia montana grows on rocky slopes and ridge tops and in dry meadows and open grasslands, at elevations of 1400-3500 m. Its range extends from the western United States to Guatemala. Muhlenbergia montana is sometimes difficult to distinguish from M. filiculmis, but that species has shorter spikelets and lemma awns and tightly involute or filiform, sharp blades.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Muhlenbergia porteri grows among boulders on rocky slopes and on cliffs, and in dry arroyos, desert flats, and grasslands, frequently in the protection of shrubs, at elevations of 600-1700 m. Its geographic range extends from the southwestern United States to northern Mexico.
Muhlenbergia porteri is highly palatable to all classes of livestock, but is never abundant at any particular location.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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USDA Plants Database
