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bog bluegrass, eastern bog bluegrass

Diablo bluegrass, Diablo Canyon blue grass

Habit Plants perennial; usually pale green; loosely tufted, slender, usually neither stoloniferous nor rhizomatous, occasionally with short, slender rhizomes. Plants perennial; loosely tufted, forming airy mounds to 30 cm across, shortly rhizomatous and stoloniferous.
Culms

10-55 cm, very slender, weak.

26-50 cm tall, 0.5-0.9 mm thick, bases decumbent or nearly erect, frequently branching above the base, terete or weakly compressed;

nodes terete, 1-2 exserted.

Sheaths

closed for 1/4 - 3/5 their length, terete, smooth or sparsely scabrous, margins not ciliate;

ligules 0.5-2 mm, smooth or sparsely scabrous, truncate;

blades 0.8-2 mm wide, flat, thin, soft, apices narrowly prow-shaped.

closed for 2/5 – 7/10 their length, weakly keeled, sparsely scabrous, glabrous, bases of basal sheaths glabrous, distal sheath lengths 0.6-2.4 times blade lengths;

collars scabrous or pubescent on the margins;

ligules (1)2-3 mm, moderately densely scabrous, truncate, obtuse, or acute, lacerate to entire;

innovation blades to 20 cm, adaxial surfaces sparsely scabrous, glabrous or hispidulous on and between the veins;

cauline blades 1.5-2.4 mm wide, folded or flat, thin, soft, abaxial surfaces smooth, veins prominent, keel and margins scabrous, adaxial surfaces moderately scabrous over the veins, sparsely scabrous between the veins, apices narrowly prow-shaped, flag leaf blades 2.9-8.6(11) cm.

Basal branching

mostly extravaginal.

extra-, pseudo-, and intravaginal.

Panicles

3-8(12) cm, lax, open, sparse;

nodes with 1-2(3) branches;

branches (2)3-7 cm, spreading to reflexed, capillary, angled, angles scabrous.

(4)5.5-10.5(12.5) cm, erect, ovoid to broadly pyramidal, open, or eventually loosely contracted, sparse, with 10-40 spikelets;

nodes with 1-2 branches;

branches 2.1-4.5(7) cm, ascending, lax, angled, angles moderately to densely scabrous, less scabrous between the angles, with 1-9 spikelets.

Spikelets

3.2-5.2 mm, laterally compressed, broadly lanceolate to ovate;

florets 2-3(5);

rachilla internodes smooth, glabrous.

5.3-9 mm, lengths to 3 times widths, laterally compressed, not sexually dimorphic;

florets (2)3-6(7);

rachilla internodes 1-1.3 mm, visible from the sides, usually sparsely to densely, coarsely scabrous, infrequently smooth.

Glumes

narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, thin, distinctly keeled, keels scabrous;

lower glumes 1-3-veined;

upper glumes shorter than or subequal to the adjacent lemmas;

calluses sparsely webbed;

lemmas 2.5-4 mm, lanceolate, green, distinctly keeled, keels and marginal veins short-villous, extending 2/3 – 4/5 the keel length, lateral veins fairly prominent, intercostal regions glabrous, apices obtuse to broadly acute, white, faintly bronze-colored or not;

palea keels scabrous;

anthers 0.2-0.8 mm.

distinctly keeled;

lower glumes (2)2.7-3.8 mm, 3-veined, upper glumes (2.3)2.9-3.9 mm;

calluses diffusely webbed, hairs 1/3-1/2 the lemma length;

lemmas (3.2)4.25-5 mm, lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, distinctly keeled, glabrous, moderately to densely, infrequently sparsely, scabrous, lateral veins prominent, margins narrowly scarious, glabrous, apices acute to narrowly acute;

paleas 3/4 as long as to subequal to the lemmas, keels scabrous, intercostal regions scabrous;

anthers (1.4)1.75-2.6 mm, or vestigial (0.1-0.2 mm).

2n

= unknown.

= unknown.

Poa paludigena

Poa diaboli

Distribution
from FNA
IA; IL; IN; MI; MN; NC; NJ; NY; OH; PA; VA; WI; WV
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[BONAP county map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Poa paludigena is an inconspicuous species restricted to the northeastern United States. It grows in shady bogs and fens, often underneath other plants. Poa trivialis (p. 568) sometimes grows with P. paludigena; the former has distinctly longer ligules and anthers. Plants from the middle Appalachian Mountains are sometimes confused with P. sylvestris (p. 512). Poa paludigena is generally shorter and more slender, has shorter panicles with only 1-2 branches per node, is glabrous between the lemma veins and on the palea keels, has shorter anthers, and grows in colder habitats.

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

Poa diaboli, which is sequentially gynomonoecious, is endemic to upper shaly slopes, in soft coastal scrub and openings in Bishop Pine stands, in the coastal mountains of San Luis Obispo County, California. It is closely related to P. confinis (see previous), from which it differs by a suite of characters. The two species are also ecologically and geographically distinct.

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

Source FNA vol. 24, p. 572. FNA vol. 24, p. 552.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Pooideae > tribe Poeae > Poa > subg. Poa > sect. Oreinos Poaceae > subfam. Pooideae > tribe Poeae > Poa > subg. Poa > sect. Madropoa > subsect. Madropoa
Sibling taxa
P. abbreviata, P. alpina, P. alsodes, P. ammophila, P. annua, P. arachnifera, P. arctica, P. arida, P. arnowiae, P. atropurpurea, P. autumnalis, P. bigelovii, P. bolanderi, P. bulbosa, P. chaixii, P. chambersii, P. chapmaniana, P. compressa, P. confinis, P. curtifolia, P. cusickii, P. cuspidata, P. diaboli, P. douglasii, P. eminens, P. fendleriana, P. glauca, P. hartzii, P. howellii, P. infirma, P. interior, P. keckii, P. kelloggii, P. laxa, P. laxa × glauca, P. laxiflora, P. leibergii, P. leptocoma, P. lettermanii, P. macrantha, P. macrocalyx, P. marcida, P. napensis, P. nemoralis, P. nervosa, P. occidentalis, P. palustris, P. paucispicula, P. piperi, P. porsildii, P. pratensis, P. pringlei, P. pseudoabbreviata, P. reflexa, P. rhizomata, P. saltuensis, P. secunda, P. sierrae, P. stebbinsii, P. stenantha, P. strictiramea, P. sublanata, P. suksdorfii, P. supina, P. sylvestris, P. tenerrima, P. tracyi, P. trivialis, P. unilateralis, P. wheeleri, P. wolfii, P. ×gaspensis, P. ×limosa, P. ×nematophylla
P. abbreviata, P. alpina, P. alsodes, P. ammophila, P. annua, P. arachnifera, P. arctica, P. arida, P. arnowiae, P. atropurpurea, P. autumnalis, P. bigelovii, P. bolanderi, P. bulbosa, P. chaixii, P. chambersii, P. chapmaniana, P. compressa, P. confinis, P. curtifolia, P. cusickii, P. cuspidata, P. douglasii, P. eminens, P. fendleriana, P. glauca, P. hartzii, P. howellii, P. infirma, P. interior, P. keckii, P. kelloggii, P. laxa, P. laxa × glauca, P. laxiflora, P. leibergii, P. leptocoma, P. lettermanii, P. macrantha, P. macrocalyx, P. marcida, P. napensis, P. nemoralis, P. nervosa, P. occidentalis, P. paludigena, P. palustris, P. paucispicula, P. piperi, P. porsildii, P. pratensis, P. pringlei, P. pseudoabbreviata, P. reflexa, P. rhizomata, P. saltuensis, P. secunda, P. sierrae, P. stebbinsii, P. stenantha, P. strictiramea, P. sublanata, P. suksdorfii, P. supina, P. sylvestris, P. tenerrima, P. tracyi, P. trivialis, P. unilateralis, P. wheeleri, P. wolfii, P. ×gaspensis, P. ×limosa, P. ×nematophylla
Name authority Fernald & Wiegand Soreng & D.J. Keil
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