| TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993) |
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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.
Annual, perennial herb
Leaves short, tufted
Inflorescence panicle-like, dense, short, barely elevated above leaves
Spikelet bisexual; glumes > florets, thin, 1-veined; axis breaking apart above glumes, falling as 1 unit; florets 4, lower 2 sterile or staminate, 3rd bisexual, uppermost sterile, ± vestigial; lemma ciliate, back rounded, 3-veined, deeply 2-lobed to middle, lobes short-awned, tip awned between lobes, awn = lobes; palea ciliate or glabrous
Species in genus: 4 species: sw North America, Argentina
Etymology: (Greek: eyelash + chaff, from ciliate lemma)
| Native |
Perennial, tufted
Stem generally < 10 cm
Leaf: blade 1–3 cm, < ± 1 mm wide; sheath margins translucent; blade curved, ± stiff, sharp-pointed
Inflorescence < 2 cm, head-like, terminal, exceeded by upper blades, straw-colored or purplish
Spikelet compressed; glumes 7–8 mm, ± equal, acuminate; callus soft-hairy; lemmas ± 6 mm, margins ciliate, base soft-hairy; sterile palea narrower and < lemma; fertile palea = lemma
Chromosomes: 2n=14
Ecology: Pinyon/juniper woodland
Elevation: 1350–1600 m.
Bioregional distribution: East of Sierra Nevada, Desert Mountains
Distribution outside California: to s Utah
Flowering time: May
Reference: [Hunziker & Anton 1979 Brittonia 31:446–453]