272 NORTH AMERICAN FLORA [Volume 17 



reflexed, 1-3 cm. long, 1,5-3 mm. wide, glabrous on the upper surface or puberulent toward 

 the base,, puberulent beneath, at least toward the tip; panicles finally long-exserted, 1.5-4 cm. 

 long, nearly as wide, the flexuous branches spreading or the lower reflexed; spikelets 1.3-1.5 

 mm. long, elliptic, subacute, glabrous or puberulent; first glume one fourth as long as the spike- 

 let or less,- acute or obtuse; second glume slightly shorter than the fruit and sterile lemma; 

 fruit 1.2 mm. long, elliptic, subacute. 



Autumnal culms spreading or reclining, sparingly branching from the middle nodes, the 

 branches mostly remaining simple; winter blades glabrous, usually short, 1.5-3 cm. long, 

 2-4 mm. wide. 



Type locality : Georgia. 



Distribution: New Jersey to Georgia; Mississippi. 



Illustrations: Bull. U. S. Dep. Agr. Agrost. 17: /. 368; Circ. U. S. Dep. Agr. Agrost. 29: /. 4\ 

 Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 15: /. 291; Britt. & Brown, 111. Fl. 3: App./. 263a; ed. 2./. 343. 



170. Panicum vernale Hitchc. & Chase, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 15: 



266. 1910. 



Vernal plants light-green, soft in texture; culms densely cespitose, 15-30 cm., rarely 

 40 cm. high, very slender, ascending or spreading, glabrous, the nodes glabrous; leaves clus- 

 tered at the base, the thin, rather soft blades 2-7 cm. long. 3-5 mm. wide, those of the culm 

 remote, the glabrous sheaths one fourth to one third as long as the elongate internodes ; 

 ligule almost obsolete; blades 0.7-2.5 cm. long, 2-3 mm. wide, glabrous or puberulent on the 

 lower surface, occasionally also on the upper surface, at first erect, becoming spreading or re- 

 flexed; panicles finally long-exserted, 1.5-3 cm. long, nearly as wide, rather few-flowered, the 

 flexuous branches spreading; spikelets 1.4-1.5 mm. long, 0.8 mm. wide, obovate-elliptic, sub- 

 acute, pubescent ; first glume about one fourth as long as the spikelet, subacute ; second glume 

 and sterile lemma scarcely as long as the fruit at maturity; fruit 1.2 mm. long, 0.7-0.8 mm. wide. 



Autumnal phase like the vernal form in appearance, branching from the base, these culms 

 simple and soon dying to the ground, rarely late in the season producing a few short fascicled 

 branchlets at the nodes, the scarcely reduced flat blades spreading; winter leaves numerous, 

 soft, persistent during the vernal stage, linear, rather abruptly narrowed at the apex, not long- 

 acuminate. 



TypS locality: Lake City, Florida. 

 Distribution: Florida to Mississippi. 

 Illustration: Contr. XJ. S. Nat. Herb. 15: /. 293. 



171. Panicum curtifolium Nash, Bull. Torrey Club 26: 569. 1899. 



Panicum Earlei Nash, Bull. Torrey Club 26: 571. 1899. 



Panicum austro-montanum Ashe, Jour. KHsha Mitchell Soc. 16: 85. 1900. 



Vernal phase in dense colonies, the culms not crowded in the clump; culms 10-30 cm. high, 

 slender, weak, angled, erect or spreading, glabrous or sometimes with a few scattered hairs, 

 the nodes sparsely bearded; leaf -sheaths much shorter than the elongate internodes, striate- 

 angled, sparsely spreading-pilose, ciliate, especially at the summit; ligule about 1 mm. long, 

 the hairs soft, rather sparse; blades spreading or reflexed, 1.5-3 cm. long, 2-5 mm, wide, thin 

 and soft, sparsely pilose on both surfaces or glabrous above except for long soft hairs near the 

 base; panicles short-exserted at least till after maturity, 2-3 cm. long, nearly as wide, the 

 branches ascending; spikelets 1.4 mm. long, 0.7 mm. wide, elliptic-obovate, obtuse, glabrous, 

 or minutely pubescent ; first glume about one fifth as long as the spikelet ; second glume and 

 sterile lemma both shorter than the fruit at maturity; fruit 1.25 mm. long, 0.7 mm. wide, 

 elliptic. 



Autumnal phase weakly spreading, the culms branching from the middle nodes after the 

 maturity of the primary panicles, the branches exceeding the internodes; ultimate branchlets 

 in small fascicles toward the summit of the branches, the reduced blades spreading and the 

 small panicles mostly exserted; winter rosette appearing early, the soft blades mostly 2-3 cm., 

 but sometimes as much as 5 cm. long. 



Type locality: Ocean Springs, Mississippi. 



Distribution: South Carolina and Tennessee to Florida and Mississippi. 



Illustration: Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 15: /. 295. 



