Sisyrinchium angustifolium
Sisyrinchium montanum
Bermudienne à feuilles étroites, blue-eyed grass, narrow-leaf blue-eyed-grass, stout blue-eyed grass
Bermudienne montagnarde, mountain blue-eyed-grass, strict blue-eyed-grass
branched, with 1–2 nodes, 2.3–5 mm wide, glabrous, margins often minutely denticulate especially basally, similar in color and texture to stem body;
first internode 10–30 cm, usually longer than leaves;
distalmost node with 1–3 branches.
simple, obviously winged, (1.5–)2–3.7 mm wide, glabrous, margins entire (in eastern populations) to denticulate (in western populations) apically, similar in color and texture to stem body.
blades glabrous, bases not persistent in fibrous tufts.
blades glabrous, bases not persistent in fibrous tufts.
borne singly;
spathes usually green, obviously wider than supporting branch, glabrous, keels denticulate to entire;
outer 18–38 mm, 2–9.5 mm longer than inner, usually tapering evenly towards apex, margins basally connate 4–6 mm;
inner with keel evenly curved or straight, hyaline margins 0.1–0.3 mm wide, apex acuminate to acute, ending 0.2–0.7 mm proximal to green apex.
borne singly;
spathes usually green or bronze, rarely with purplish margins, glabrous, keels usually denticulate;
outer 36–76 mm, 12–46 mm longer than inner, slightly constricted proximal to apex, margins basally connate 2–5.7 mm;
inner with keel ± gibbous basally, sinuous proximally, hyaline margins 0.1–0.3 mm wide, apex acuminate to acute, ending 0.9–4.3 mm proximal to recurved green apex.
tepals pale blue to violet, occasionally white, bases yellow;
outer tepals 7.7–12.5 mm, apex rounded or emarginate, aristate;
filaments connate ± entirely, stipitate-glandular basally;
ovary similar in color to foliage.
tepals dark bluish violet, bases yellow;
outer tepals 9–14.5 mm, apex emarginate to retuse, aristate;
filaments connate ± entirely, stipitate-glandular basally;
ovary similar in color to foliage.
dark brown or black, sometimes with purplish tinge, ± globose, 4–7 mm;
pedicel spreading or ascending.
tan to dark brown, sometimes with purplish tinge apically, ± globose to obovoid, 4–6.8 mm;
pedicel erect to spreading.
globose to obconic, lacking obvious depression, 0.5–1.2 mm, rugulose.
globose to obconic, lacking obvious depression, 0.9–1.5 mm, rugulose.
= 96.
Sisyrinchium angustifolium
Sisyrinchium montanum
Sisyrinchium membranaceum E. P. Bicknell probably belongs here; Bicknell indicated that its relationship was “with S. graminoides” and his description falls within that of S. angustifolium, except for slightly shorter spathe bracts.
In previous floras, Sisyrinchium angustifolium often has been confused with S. montanum, especially when S. graminoides was segregated. Branching seems to be the primary point of confusion. The original descriptions of S. angustifolium and S. graminoides clearly indicated branching while that of S. montanum indicates it to be single-stemmed. There is some slight similarity between S. montanum var. crebrum and S. angustifolium with respect to spathe connation and dry color, and chromosome counts indicate that both have 2n = 96, but there is some indication that breeding barriers may exist (D. B. Ward 1959).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).
Eastern coastal populations of Sisyrinchium montanum appear to have some slight affinity to S. angustifolium (e.g., long connation of outer spathe) and some previous floras have combined the two taxa. Some taxonomists have questioned the recognition of varieties within S. montanum, but we feel that the differences between them are no more subtle than those between varieties generally recognized elsewhere in the genus. Living material was not available to us to investigate breeding barriers. Although Sisyrinchium montanum is considered weedy by D. T. Patterson et al. (1989), I have seen many populations all through the western states and Great Lakes areas and would not consider it weedy in any of these portions of the range.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Margins of outer spathe connate basally 4–5.7 mm; plants drying dark brown or bronze. | var. crebrum |
1. Margins of outer spathe connate basally 1–3.5 mm; plants drying green to olive. | var. montanum |
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