Flora of North America species comparison

8-100 cm tall, about 1 mm thick, erect to decumbent, simple to profusely branched;

nodes sparsely to densely pilose.

(6)25-100 cm, 0.5-3.5 mm thick, spreading to weakly ascending, usually freely branching;

nodes pilose, hairs spreading to ascending;

internodes pilose, with papillose-based hairs, or sparsely hispid.

rounded, glabrous, margins shortly ciliate distally;

ligules 0.6-4 mm, of hairs;

blades (3)6-15 cm long, 1-5 mm wide, spreading, abaxial surfaces sparsely hirsute, adaxial surfaces more densely so, hairs papillose-based, midribs prominent and not white, margins involute, bases cuneate, apices subulate.

often crowded basally;

sheaths rounded, usually longer than the internodes, hispid, hairs papillose-based, to 5 mm;

ligules 0.5-1.5 mm;

blades 3-30 cm long, 2-12 mm wide, linear, ascending to erect, flat, hirsute to sparsely pilose, greenish or purplish, bases truncate to subcordate and ciliate on the margins, apices acute.

7-27 cm long, 4-24 cm wide, 1/4 - 1/3 as long as the plants, diffuse, usually exserted at anthesis, not breaking at the base of the peduncles to become a tumbleweed;

rachises glabrous or sparsely pilose basally;

primary branches spreading, secondary branches and pedicels confined to the distal 2/3 secondary branches diverging to appressed, with 1-4 spikelets;

pedicels 3-15 mm, spreading to appressed, scabrous or hirsute;

pulvini glabrous or pilose.

1.4-2.4 mm long, 0.5-0.7 mm wide, usually green, glabrous.

2.1-2.9 mm long, 0.8-1 mm wide, glabrous.

0.5-0.9 mm, usually less than 1/2 as long as the spikelets, 3-4-veined, truncate to acuminate;

upper glumes 1.6-2 mm, 7-veined, veins not prominent;

lower lemmas 1.6-1.9 mm, 7-9-veined, veins not prominent;

lower paleas absent;

lower florets sterile;

upper florets 1.5-1.7 mm long, about 0.4 mm wide, often dark brown, sometimes disarticulating, apices minutely papillose.

1-1.2 mm, to 1/2 as long as the spikelets, attenuate, 5-9-veined, veins anastomosing apically;

upper glumes and lower lemmas similar, extending about 0.5 mm beyond the upper florets, 11-13-veined;

lower florets sterile;

lower paleas 1-1.3 mm;

upper florets 1.5-1.8 mm long, 0.6-0.8 mm wide, smooth.

panicles 3-35 cm long, about 1/2 as wide, shortly exserted;

axillary panicles smaller, not fully exserted;

rachises scabridulous;

primary branches usually solitary, sometimes paired, divergent and widely spaced, secondary branching mostly on the distal 1/3 of the primary branches;

pedicels 1-4 mm, spreading to appressed, confined to the distal portions of the secondary branches.

= 18.

= 36.