Flora of North America species comparison

10-60 cm.

15-100 cm, slender to middling.

closed for 1/3 – 2/3 their length, terete, smooth;

ligules 1.5-3.5 mm, smooth or sparsely scabrous;

blades 1.5-4 mm wide, flat, thin, soft, apices broadly prow-shaped.

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

ligules 1.5-4(6) mm, smooth to sparsely scabrous, obtuse to acute;

blades 1-4 mm wide, flat, thin, lax, soft, apices narrowly prow-shaped.

mixed intra- and extravaginal.

mostly extravaginal.

4-15 cm, nodding, open, with numerous spikelets and 1-2 branches per node;

branches (2)3-7 cm, spreading to reflexed, lower branches usually reflexed, flexuous, usually terete, smooth or sparsely scabrous, with (3)6-18 spikelets.

5-15 cm, lax, open, sparse;

nodes with 1-3(5) branches;

branches (2)3-8 cm, spreading to reflexed, capillary, usually angled, infrequently only sulcate or subterete, angles usually moderately densely scabrous, sometimes only sparsely so, with (3)4-15 spikelets.

4-6 mm, lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, usually partly to wholly purplish, with 3-5 florets;

rachilla internodes shorter than 1 mm, smooth.

4-8 mm, lanceolate or narrowly lanceolate, green or partly purple to dark purple;

florets 2-5;

rachilla internodes smooth, glabrous.

narrowly to broadly lanceolate, distinctly keeled, keels smooth or nearly so;

lower glumes 1-veined;

upper glumes shorter than or subequal to the lowest lemmas;

calluses webbed;

lemmas 2-3.5 mm, lanceolate, partly purple to fairly strongly purple, distinctly keeled, keels and marginal veins short- to long-villous, keels hairy for 2h-ls their length, lateral veins usually sparsely softly puberulent at least on 1 side, lateral veins obscure to moderately prominent, intercostal regions smooth, minutely bumpy, glabrous, apices acute, slightly bronze-colored or not;

palea keels scabrous, usually softly puberulent at midlength;

anthers 0.6-1 mm.

subulate to lanceolate, thin, distinctly keeled, keels usually scabrous;

lower glumes subulate to narrowly lanceolate, 1-veined;

upper glumes distinctly shorter than to nearly equaling the lowest lemmas;

calluses sparsely webbed;

lemmas 3-4 mm, lanceolate, often partly purple, distinctly keeled, thin, smooth, or with sparse hooks apically, keels and marginal veins softly puberulent to long-villous, hairs extending 1/4 - 2/3 the keel length, sometimes sparse, lateral veins and intercostal regions glabrous, margins glabrous, infolded, apices sharply acute to acuminate, usually bronze-colored;

palea keels nearly smooth, scabrous, or pectinately ciliate;

anthers 0.2-1.1 mm.

= 28.

= 42.