Sisyrinchium atlanticum
Sisyrinchium montanum
eastern blue-eyed-grass
Bermudienne montagnarde, mountain blue-eyed-grass, strict blue-eyed-grass
branched, with 1 or 2 nodes, 0.8–1.9 mm wide, usually glabrous, margins entire, similar in color and texture to stem body;
first internode 11–36 cm, longer than leaves;
distalmost node with 2–3 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 usually glabrous, bases occasionally becoming fibrous, but not persistent in tufts.
blades glabrous, bases not persistent in fibrous tufts.
borne singly;
spathes green or occasionally with purplish tinge on margins, obviously wider than supporting branch, glabrous or slightly scabrous, keels entire;
outer 12–16.1 mm, 1.4 mm shorter to 1.5 mm longer than inner, tapering evenly towards apex, margins basally connate 3–5.2 mm;
inner with keel evenly curved or straight, hyaline margins 0.2–0.6 mm wide, apex broadly rounded to truncate, usually erose, ending 0–0.5 mm proximal to green apex or, occasionally, exceeding it by up to 0.5 mm.
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 light blue or bluish violet to purple or occasionally white, bases yellow;
outer tepals 6.3–11 mm, apex emarginate to truncate, aristate;
filaments connate ± entirely, stipitate-glandular basally;
ovary blackish, in contrast with much lighter 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 to black or purplish black, ± globose to obovoid, 2–4.1 mm;
pedicel ascending to erect.
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 or occasionally granular.
globose to obconic, lacking obvious depression, 0.9–1.5 mm, rugulose.
= 16, 32.
Sisyrinchium atlanticum
Sisyrinchium montanum
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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