Flora of North America species comparison

11-110 cm, erect to decumbent;

nodes shortly hirsute or glabrous.

20-210 cm, stout, not woody;

nodes puberulent;

internodes usually with papillose-based hairs, sometimes nearly glabrous, not succulent.

shorter than the internodes, greenish to purplish, glabrous or with papillose-based hairs, ciliate on 1 margin, glabrous on the other;

collars hirsute;

ligules 1.5-3.5 mm, of hairs;

blades 3-30 cm long, 3-30 mm wide, flat, usually hirsute or sparsely pubescent, hairs papillose-based, sometimes glabrous, bases rounded to cordate-clasping, margins ciliate, cilia papillose-based, apices acute.

numerous;

sheaths terete, densely pilose, with papillose-based and caducous hairs;

ligules membranous, ciliate, cilia 1-3 mm;

blades 15-40 cm long, 7-25 mm wide.

9-30 cm long, 5-8 cm wide, erect or nodding, partially included to well-exserted, rachises glabrous or sparsely hispid basally;

primary branches usually alternate to opposite, divergent, secondary branches and pedicels confined to the distal 2/3;

pulvini inconspicuous;

secondary branches appressed;

pedicels 9-27 mm, appressed.

6-20 cm long, 4-11 cm wide, included or shortly exserted at maturity, dense;

branches stiff, appressed to spreading, spikelets solitary, confined to the distal portions;

pedicels 1-9 mm, scabrous and sparsely pilose.

1.9-4 mm long, 0.8-1 mm wide, ovoid to almost spherical, often reddish-brown, glabrous, veins prominent, scabridulous, apices abruptly acuminate.

4-6 mm, ovoid, usually glabrous.

1.3-2.4 mm, 1/2 - 3/4 as long as the spikelets, 3-5-veined;

upper glumes 1.8-3.3 mm, 7-11-veined;

lower florets sterile;

lower lemmas similar to the upper glumes, 9-veined;

lower paleas 0.4-0.9 mm;

upper florets 1.5-2.4 mm long, 0.4-0.8 mm wide, ellipsoid, smooth or conspicuously papillate, shiny, stramineous, often with a lunate scar at the base.

2.8-3.6 mm, 1/2 - 3/4 as long as the spikelets, 5-7-veined, veins scabridulous distally, apices attenuate;

upper glumes 4-5.1 mm, slightly exceeding the upper florets, 11-13(15)-veined, veins scabridulous distally;

lower florets sterile;

lower lemmas 4-4.8 mm, slightly exceeding the upper florets, 9-13-veined, veins scabridulous distally;

lower paleas 1.2-1.6 mm, 1/2 or less the length of the upper florets, truncate to bilobed;

upper florets 3-3.8 mm long, 2-2.5 mm wide, smooth or striate, more or less shiny, stramineous to orange, red-brown, or blackish, persisting in the spikelets or disarticulating at maturity.

= 36, 40, 42, 49, 54, 72.