Poa paludigena
Poa paucispicula
bog bluegrass, eastern bog bluegrass
Alaska blue grass, few-flower bluegrass
10-55 cm, very slender, weak.
10-30 cm.
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 1/4 - 3/5 their length, terete;
ligules 1-2 mm, smooth or sparsely scabrous, truncate to obtuse;
blades 1-3 mm wide, flat, thin, soft, apices broadly prow-shaped.
mostly extravaginal.
mainly extravaginal.
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.
2.5-10 cm, lax to nearly erect, open, sparse, with 1-2 branches per node;
branches (2)3-6 cm, ascending to spreading, lower branches infrequently reflexed, lax or drooping, capillary, terete to slightly sulcate, usually smooth, rarely some branches within a panicle sparsely scabrous, with 1-3(5) spikelets.
3.2-5.2 mm, laterally compressed, broadly lanceolate to ovate;
florets 2-3(5);
rachilla internodes smooth, glabrous.
4-6 mm, laterally compressed, broadly lanceolate to ovate, usually dark purple, with 3-5 florets;
rachilla internodes smooth, glabrous.
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.
lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, thin, distinctly keeled, keels smooth or nearly so;
lower glumes 1-veined;
upper glumes shorter than or subequal to the lowest lemmas;
calluses sparsely webbed;
lemmas 3-4 mm, broadly lanceolate, usually strongly purple, distinctly keeled, thin, keels and marginal veins short- to long-villous, keels hairy for 1/2-1/3 their length, lateral veins glabrous, intercostal regions smooth, glabrous, margins glabrous, not infolded, apices acute, sometimes slightly bronze-colored;
palea keels sparsely scabrous at midlength;
anthers 0.4-1 mm.
= unknown.
= 28, 42.
Poa paludigena
Poa paucispicula
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 paucispicula grows in arctic and alpine regions, from the north coast of Alaska and the western Northwest Territories south to Washington, Idaho, and Wyoming; it also grows in arctic far east Russia. It is a delicate species that prefers open, mesic, rocky slopes. It has sometimes been included in P. leptocoma (p. 573), a member of Poa sect. Oreinos. It differs from P. leptocoma in having smoother branches, fewer spikelets, and broader glumes. Chloroplast DNA studies confirm that it is not closely related to species of sect. Oreinos; ITS data support its relationship to P. leptocoma.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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