| TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993) |
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Jepson Interchange (more information) |
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©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California
For up-to-date information about California vascular plants, visit the Jepson eFlora. |
AND IS MAINTAINED FOR ARCHIVAL PURPOSES ONLY |
Annual to bamboo-like; roots generally fibrous
Stem generally round, hollow; nodes swollen, solid
Leaves alternate, 2-ranked, generally linear; sheath generally open; ligule membranous or hairy, at blade base
Inflorescence various (of generally many spikelets)
Spikelet: glumes generally 2; florets (lemma, palea, flower) 1–many; lemma generally membranous, sometimes glume-like; palea generally ± transparent, ± enclosed by lemma
Flower generally bisexual, minute; stamens generally 3; stigmas generally 2, generally plumose
Fruit: achene-like grain
Genera in family: 650–900 genera; ± 10,000 species: worldwide; greatest economic importance of any family (wheat, rice, maize, millet, sorghum, sugar cane, forage crops, ornamental, weeds; thatching, weaving, building materials)
Reference: [Hitchcock 1951 Manual grasses US, USDA Misc Publ 200; Clayton & Renvoise 1986 Kew Bull Add Series 13]
See Glossary p. 26 for illustrations of general family characteristics. Generally wind-pollinated.
Species in genus: 1 sp
Etymology: (Frank L. Scribner, American agrostologist, 1851–1938)
| Native |
Annual
Stem ascending to erect, 5–30 cm, branched, glabrous; nodes purple
Leaf: sheath 1–5 cm; ligule 2–4 mm, translucent; blade midrib, margins scabrous
Inflorescence 4–11 cm, straight, ± purple; spikelets 1–2 per node, appressed, lower ± embedded in axis, upper (if present) with stalk 1–3 mm, overlapping node above
Spikelet: glumes 2, 5–7 mm, edge-to-edge or overlapping, lower 2-veined, upper 4-veined; floret 1, breaking above glumes; callus short-bristly; lemma 4–6 mm, translucent, scabrous on upper 1/3, tip notched, awned, 5-veined; awn 2–4 mm, ± straight; palea generally < lemma, notched; stamen 1, anther generally > 1 mm
Fruit ± 2.5 mm
Chromosomes: 2n=26
Ecology: Dry, disturbed areas
Elevation: 500–2500 m.
Bioregional distribution: California Floristic Province (except most Southwestern California)
Distribution outside California: to Washington
Reported from San Diego Co.