PIPEK I^ORTH AM?:KI(,^AN SPECIES OB" FESTUOA. 



5 



Helleria Fourn. Mex. PI. 2: 128. 1886. 



Jiased on Bromaa lividuslh B. K. {Festacalimday^iW^.), Inclnded 

 in Festuca by Bentham and Hooker and by IlackeL 



An examination of the list of names showis that seven genera have 

 been proposed for varying' groups of perennial Festucas (excluding 

 Leueopoa), and that fifteen names have been proposed for varying 

 groups of the annual species. Of tlie former class none has received 

 wide acceptation. In regard to tlie latter class there has been much 

 differen<*e of opinion. 



In the great modern works on plant genera the following views are ' 

 maintained: Hackel, in Engler and PrantPs Pflanzenfamilien, recog- 



nizes Festuca, Sclerochloa, Catapodium, and Scleropoa as distinct, . 

 merging the remaining proposed genera, including Ctenopsis and 

 Leueopoa, into Festuca. Bentham and Hooker include Catapodium 



■ ^ 



and Scleropoa in Festuca, unite Leueopoa M'ith Poa, but maintain 

 Sclerochloa and ("^tenopsis. Baillon follows Bentham and Hooker. 



Atropis (Puccinellia) is maintained as a genus by Hackel, but 

 reduced to a section of Glyceria (Panicularia) by Bentham and Hooker 

 and by Baillon. Ascherson and Gracbner, in their recent treatment 

 in Synopsis dcr Mittcleuropaischen Flora, unite Atropis with Festuca, 

 into which the}' also merge Splienopus and Culandia, 



We accept HackePs dolimitation of the geims, but exclude Leueopoa. 



DISTRIBUTION. 



The genus Festuca is represented in all parts of the world, but prin- 

 cipally in temperate or mountain regions. In Europe there are, accord- 

 ing to Hackel,'^ !^8 perennial species, but on a different species concept 

 Richter^-' increases this number to 103. The European annual species 



number about 2«), 



In North America we recognize 22 perennial and 12 annual species, 

 two of each group introduced from Europe. In Mexico there are about 

 10 additional perennials, and in the remaining parts of tropical North 



America a few others. 



Excluding known synon3mis there are still accredited to Asia about 



32 species, to Afj'ica alnjut 43 species, to Australasia about 10 species, 



and to South America about 75 species. It is altogether probable that 



man}' of these are s3^nonyms. 



^Monograpliia Fewtuoaruui Kuvopat^iiruiu. 

 ^I*laiitae Kuropaeae. 



