Agrostis scabra

Blooming later, June to November; spikelets more loosely arranged, the pedicels 0.5-5 (avg 2) mm; glumes 2-3 mm; Lab. to Alas., s. to Ga., Tex., and Mex. (A. scabra; A. h. var. tenuis)

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

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FNA 2007, Gould 1980

Common Name: rough bentgrass Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Graminoid General: Tufted perennial or annual, neither rhizomatous or stoloniferous with erect stems 15-90 cm, 1-3 nodes, sheaths smooth or sometimes minutely roughened. Vegetative: Blades 4-14 cm long, 1-2 mm wide, basal blades involute, cauline blades flat; ligules 0.5-5 mm, dorsal surfaces scabrous, apices usually rounded, sometimes truncate, erose-ciliate. Inflorescence: Broadly ovate panicles 8-25 cm long, 0.5-20 cm wide, often nearly as wide as long, diffuse, whole panicle often detaching at the base at maturity, exserted from upper sheaths, lowest node with 2-7 branches; branches scabrous, capillary, flexible and wide spreading, spikelets distant, not crowded, lower branches 4-12 cm; spikelets lanceolate, greenish purple to purple at maturity, disarticulating above the glume; unequal glumes 1.5-3.5 mm, lanceolate, keels scabrous toward the acuminate apices; lemmas scabrous to minutely roughened, unawned or awned from below midlength, awns 0.5-3 mm, geniculate or straight. Ecology: Found in meadows, moist seeps and along streams or lakes from 5,000-9,500 ft (1524-2896 m); flowers April-October. Notes: This is variable species, with awned and unawned plants often occurring together. Our specimens of this plant are often with broader leaves than elsewhere. The open diffuse panicle has acuminate glumes and a scabrous keel. Ethnobotany: Unknown Etymology: Agrostis is from the Latin and Greek names for a type of grass, from Greek agron or agros, field or pasture, while scabra comes from the Latin scaber meaning rough or scurfy. Synonyms: Numerous, see Tropicos Editor: SBuckley, 2010