HOW TO KNOW THE GRASSES 



80b. Plants bearing rhizomes; panicles erect, with ascending branches; 



lemmas awnless or with very short awns, 1 — 2 mm. long. Fig. 114. 



SMOOTH BROME Bromus inermis Leyss. 



Perennial; 50 — 100 cm. tall; panicles 10—20 cm. long. 

 Smooth brome, introduced from Eurasia, is one of our 

 most successful forage grasses, and has been very 

 widely planted in the U. S. for pasture and hay pro- 

 duction. It frequently escapes to roadsides, ditches, 

 and moist wooded areas. June — August. 



Bromus pumpellianus Scribn. is a closely related 

 species, native to the western states from the Black 

 Hills to Colorado and Alaska. It has rhizomes but the 

 lemmas are hairy. It hybridizes with B. inermis. 



Figure 1 14 



81a. Lemmas pubescent along the margins and lower part 

 of the back, the central portion glabrous. Fig. 115. .82 



81b. Lemmas pubescent across the back 83 



82a. Ligule 3 — 5 mm. long; awns 5 mm. or more long; plants of the 



western states. Fig. 116. 



Bromus vulgaris (Hook.) Shear 



Perennial; tufted; plants slender; culms 

 80 — 120 cm. tall; Hgules prominent; leaf 

 blades up to 12 mm. wide; panicles droop- 

 ing, 10 — 15 cm. long; spikelets about 2.5 

 cm. long; lemmas usually 8 — 10 mm. long, 

 hairy on the margins, glabrous or nearly 

 so on the back; awns 5 — 8 mm. long. 

 Moist rocky woods and canyons. July — 

 August. Forms with nearly glabrous foU- 

 age and lemmas are known. 



Figure 1 16 



61 



