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Florida paspalum

gulfdune paspalum

Habit Plants perennial; rhizomatous. Plants perennial; rhizomatous.
Culms

80-210 cm, erect;

nodes glabrous or pubescent.

60-120 cm, erect;

nodes glabrous.

Sheaths

glabrous or pubescent;

ligules 1.2-3.3 mm;

blades to 52 cm long, 3-18 mm wide, flat, glabrous or pubescent, usually densely pubescent behind the ligules.

glabrous;

ligules 0.5-3 mm;

blades to 50 cm long, 0.2-2(8) mm wide, involute (rarely flat), glabrous, pubescent behind the ligules.

Panicles

terminal, with 1-6 racemosely arranged branches;

branches 3-17.9 cm, divergent to erect, terminating in a spikelet;

branch axes 0.3-1.8 mm wide, glabrous, the margins scabrous.

terminal, with 1-3 racemosely arranged branches;

branches 5.6-23.3 cm, erect (rarely divergent), terminating in a spikelet;

branch axes 0.5-1.2 mm wide, glabrous, margins scabrous to pubescent.

Spikelets

2.9-4.1 mm long, 1.9-3.1 mm wide, paired, imbricate, appressed to the branch axes, elliptic to suborbicular to orbicular, glabrous, stramineous.

2.3-3.7 mm long, 1.3-1.9 mm wide, paired, imbricate, appressed to the branch axes, elliptic to narrowly ovate, glabrous, stramineous (rarely partially purple).

Lower glumes

absent;

upper glumes glabrous, 5-veined, margins entire;

lower lemmas glabrous, lacking ribs over the veins, 3-veined, margins entire;

upper florets golden brown.

usually absent;

upper glumes glabrous, 1-veined, margins entire;

lower lemmas glabrous, lacking ribs over the veins, 3-veined, margins entire;

upper florets stramineous.

Caryopses

2.8 mm, amber.

2-2.4 mm, yellow to golden brown.

2n

= 120, 140, ca. 160-170.

= unknown.

Paspalum floridanum

Paspalum monostachyum

Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; DC; DE; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MD; MO; MS; NC; NJ; OH; OK; PA; SC; TN; TX; VA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; LA; MS; TX
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Paspalum floridanum grows along the edges of forests, flatwoods, and pinewoods and in open areas. It is a frequent component of dry-mesic soils in longleaf pine-oak-grass ecosystems, and is restricted to the eastern United States.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Paspalum monostachyum grows in sand and muck soils on coastal sand dunes, wet prairie, marshes, and disturbed habitats of the southern coastal plain from Florida to eastern Mexico.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 25, p. 599. FNA vol. 25, p. 594.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Panicoideae > tribe Paniceae > Paspalum Poaceae > subfam. Panicoideae > tribe Paniceae > Paspalum
Sibling taxa
P. acuminatum, P. almum, P. bifidum, P. blodgettii, P. boscianum, P. caespitosum, P. conjugatum, P. conspersum, P. convexum, P. coryphaeum, P. dilatatum, P. dissectum, P. distichum, P. fimbriatum, P. hartwegianum, P. intermedium, P. laeve, P. langei, P. laxum, P. lividum, P. malacophyllum, P. minus, P. modestum, P. monostachyum, P. nicorae, P. notatum, P. paniculatum, P. pleostachyum, P. plicatulum, P. praecox, P. pubiflorum, P. quadrifarium, P. racemosum, P. repens, P. scrobiculatum, P. setaceum, P. unispicatum, P. urvillei, P. vaginatum, P. virgatum, P. virletii, P. wrightii
P. acuminatum, P. almum, P. bifidum, P. blodgettii, P. boscianum, P. caespitosum, P. conjugatum, P. conspersum, P. convexum, P. coryphaeum, P. dilatatum, P. dissectum, P. distichum, P. fimbriatum, P. floridanum, P. hartwegianum, P. intermedium, P. laeve, P. langei, P. laxum, P. lividum, P. malacophyllum, P. minus, P. modestum, P. nicorae, P. notatum, P. paniculatum, P. pleostachyum, P. plicatulum, P. praecox, P. pubiflorum, P. quadrifarium, P. racemosum, P. repens, P. scrobiculatum, P. setaceum, P. unispicatum, P. urvillei, P. vaginatum, P. virgatum, P. virletii, P. wrightii
Synonyms P. longicilium, P. floridanum var. glabratum, P. difforme
Name authority Michx. Vasey
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