Flora of North America species comparison

15-130 cm, slender to stout, not woody, erect to decumbent, straight to zigzag, simple to profusely branched;

nodes sparsely to densely pilose.

50-200 cm tall, 2-3(5) mm thick, with cormlike bases, slightly compressed, erect or geniculate at the lower nodes;

nodes glabrous or pilose;

internodes slightly compressed, glabrous.

rounded, hirsute or hispid, hairs papillose-based;

ligules membranous, ciliate, cilia 0.5-1.5 mm;

blades 5-40 cm long, 3-18 mm wide, linear, spreading.

longer or shorter than the internodes, keeled, glabrous or pilose, hairs papillose-based near the throat;

ligules 0.5-2 mm, membranous, dissected ciliate;

blades (6)20-65 cm long, 2-15 mm wide, flat, adaxial surfaces glabrous or densely pubescent, particularly basally, occasionally pubescent on both surfaces, hairs papillose-based, bases subcordate to rounded.

13-50 cm long, 7-24 cm wide, usually more than 1/2 as long as the plants, included at the base or exserted at maturity, disarticulating at the base of the peduncles at maturity and becoming a tumbleweed;

branches spreading;

pedicels 0.5-2.8 mm, scabrous, pilose.

9-50 cm long, 1.5-12 cm wide, open;

branches opposite and alternate, straight or flexible, strongly ascending to reflexed;

pedicels 0.5-5 mm, scabridulous, divergent.

1.9-4 mm, ellipsoid to lanceoloid, often red-purple, glabrous.

2.8-4.2(5.4) mm long, 1-2 mm wide, ellipsoid or lanceoloid, often purplish, glabrous, acute or obtuse.

1.2-3.5 mm, 1/2 - 4/5 as long as the spikelets, 3-5-veined;

upper glumes often longer than the lower lemmas, glabrous, 5-7-veined;

lower florets sterile or staminate;

lower lemmas glabrous;

lower paleas 3-4 mm, sometimes longer than the lower lemmas;

upper florets 3-4 mm long, 1-1.5 mm wide, equaling or surpassing the lower lemmas, dull, pale, finely transversely rugose, lemma apices puberulent.

florets sterile;

lower glumes 1/3– 1/2 as long as the spikelets, 1-3-veined;

upper glumes 1.8-3.1 mm, 7-9-veined, midveins scabridulous;

lower lemmas 1.9-3 mm, extending 0.4-1.1 mm beyond the upper florets, often stiff, straight, prominently veined distally;

upper florets stramineous or nigrescent, sometimes with a prominent lunate scar at the base, often disarticulating before the glumes, leaving the empty glumes and lower lemmas temporarily persisting on the panicles.

= 18.

= 36, 54, 70, 72.