Flora of North America species comparison

11-110 cm, erect to decumbent;

nodes shortly hirsute or glabrous.

50-200 cm, strongly compressed, decumbent-erect, glaucous;

nodes glabrous.

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.

keeled, glabrous or pubescent near the throat, upper sheaths much shorter than the internodes;

ligules 0.5-2 mm, membranous, dissected ciliate;

blades 20-35 cm long, 7-17 mm wide, flat, glabrous on both surfaces or the adaxial surfaces sparsely pilose.

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.

12-50 cm, about 2/3 as wide, open;

primary branches spreading, often verticillate at the lower nodes;

pedicels 0.2-4 mm, scabrous, spreading.

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

2.5-3.4 mm long, about 1.2 mm wide, ellipsoid, 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.

usually shorter than 1.7 mm, up to 1/2 as long as the spikelets, 3-veined, subacute;

upper glumes and lower lemmas subequal, scarcely longer than the upper florets, 5-veined;

lower florets sterile or staminate;

upper florets 2.9-3 mm long, about 1 mm wide, ellipsoid, glabrous, dull, pale, obscurely transversely rugose, apices minutely pubescent.

= unknown.