Flora of North America species comparison

1-12 cm, slender.

23-86 cm tall, 0.8-1.8 mm thick, bases often decumbent.

closed for 1/6 – 1/4 their length, terete;

ligules 1-3 mm, milky white to hyaline, smooth;

blades 0.5-2 mm wide, flat or folded, or slightly inrolled, thin, without papillae (at 100x), apices narrowly prow-shaped.

closed for 1/3 – 1/2 their length;

ligules 0.2-1.9(2.5) mm, smooth or obtuse;

blades (0.5)1-4 mm wide, flat or folded, thin.

all or mainly intra-vaginal.

mainly pseudointravaginal.

1-3 cm, erect, contracted, usually exserted from the sheaths;

branches to 1.5 cm, erect to steeply ascending, slender, sulcate or angled, smooth or the angles sparsely scabrous;

pedicels shorter than the spikelets.

(5)8-20 cm, erect or lax, broadly pyramidal at maturity, open, sparse, lower axils sometimes sparsely pubescent;

nodes with 1-2(4) branches;

branches 5-12 cm, spreading to reflexed, straight, angled, angles scabrous, with 3-8 spikelets in the distal 1/4-1/3.

3-4 mm, laterally compressed, green or anthocyanic;

florets 2-3;

rachilla internodes shorter than 1 mm, smooth.

3-8.2 mm, laterally compressed;

florets 2-4(6);

rachilla internodes smooth, sparsely softly puberulent.

usually equaling or exceeding the lowest lemmas, sometimes also equaling or exceeding the upper florets, lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, distinctly keeled, keels smooth;

lower glumes 3-veined;

calluses glabrous;

lemmas 2.5-3 mm, lanceolate, distinctly keeled, thin, usually glabrous, keels and marginal veins rarely sparsely puberulent proximally, apices acute;

palea keels scabrous;

anthers 0.2-0.8 mm.

distinctly shorter than the adjacent lemmas, distinctly keeled, keels scabrous;

lower glumes subulate to lanceolate, (1)3-veined;

upper glumes lanceolate to broadly lanceolate;

calluses usually glabrous, rarely sparsely and shortly webbed;

lemmas (2.8)3-4.6 mm, lanceolate, distinctly keeled, keels and marginal veins short- to long-villous, hairs extending up 3/4 of the keel, lateral veins prominent, intercostal regions softly puberulent, smooth, apices obtuse, blunt;

palea keels softly puberulent to short-villous for much of their length, apices scabrous;

anthers 1-1.4(2.6) mm.

= 14.

= 28.