Flora of North America species comparison

50-300 cm tall, 2-4 mm thick, often compressed, erect or ascending, hard, becoming almost woody;

nodes swollen, glabrous or pubescent;

internodes glabrous, glaucous.

20-60 cm tall, 0.8-1.2 mm thick, shortly decumbent to geniculate basally, erect distally;

nodes glabrous;

internodes glabrous.

not keeled, shorter than or equal to the internodes, glabrous or the lower sheaths at least partially pubescent, hairs papillose-based;

ligules 0.3-1.5 mm;

blades 10-60 cm long, 3-20 mm wide, elongate, flat, abaxial surfaces and margins scabrous, adaxial surfaces occasionally pubescent near the base, with prominent, white midveins, bases rounded to narrowed.

shorter or longer than the internodes, rounded, smooth, glabrous;

ligules about 1 mm;

blades 5-15 cm long, 2-8 mm wide, flat, linear, glabrous or with a few marginal cilia near the base, bases contracted, apices long-acute.

10-45 cm, to 1/2 as wide as long, open or somewhat contracted, with many spikelets;

branches 4-12 cm, opposite or alternate, ascending to spreading;

pedicels 0.3-2.5 mm, scabridulous to scabrous, appressed to diverging less than 45° from the branch axes.

10-20 cm long, 6-12 cm wide, exserted or partially included;

primary branches alternate, ascending to strongly divergent, developing secondary branches in the basal 1/3 – 1/2, pedicels 4-9 mm, ascending.

2.4-3.4 mm long, 1-1.3 mm wide, ellipsoid-lanceoloid to narrowly ovoid, often purplish, glabrous, acute.

2.7-3.2 mm long, 1-1.2 mm wide, ovoid-ellipsoid, green tinged with purple, glaucous, glabrous, acute.

1.4-2.2 mm, 1/3 – 1/2 as long as the spikelets, 3-5-veined, obtuse;

upper glumes and lower lemmas subequal, glabrous, 5-9-veined, margins scarious, acute;

lower florets staminate;

upper florets 1.8-2.8 mm long, 0.9-1.1 mm wide, smooth, lustrous, acute.

0.7-1.1 mm, about 2/5 as long as the spikelets, acute to attenuate;

upper glumes and lower lemmas similar, equaling the spikelets, 11-13-veined, tapering to apiculate apices;

lower paleas 1-2 mm;

lower florets sterile;

upper florets about 2.2 mm, ellipsoid, smooth, shiny, yellow at maturity, apices acute.

= 18, 36.

= 54.