Flora of North America species comparison

4-120 cm, erect to decumbent, rooting at the lower nodes, sparingly branched near the base.

usually no more than 5 per culm, basal and cauline;

sheaths open, smooth or scabridulous;

auricles absent;

ligules membranous or hyaline, acute to broadly rounded, erose, ciliate;

blades flat to convolute.

terminal panicles, dense, continuous or interrupted below;

branches flexible, usually some longer than 1 cm;

pedicels absent and the spikelets borne on a stipe, or present and terminating in a stipe;

stipes scabrous, flaring distally;

disarticulation at the base of the stipes.

1-5 mm, weakly laterally compressed, with 1 bisexual floret;

rachillas not prolonged beyond the base of the floret.

exceeding the floret, lanceolate, bases not fused, apices entire to emarginate or bilobed, usually awned from the sinuses or apices, awns flexuous, glabrous, sometimes unawned;

lemmas 1-3(5)-veined, often awned, awns usually terminal or subterminal, sometimes arising from just above midlength;

paleas from 1/3 as long as to equaling the lemmas;

lodicules 2, oblong-lanceolate to lanceolate;

anthers 3;

ovaries glabrous;

styles separate.

slightly flattened, broadly ellipsoid to oblong-ellipsoid;

hila 1/6 – 1/4 as long as the caryopses, ovate, x = 7.