MANUAL OF THE GRASSES OF THE UNITED STATES 



233 



Figure 443.— Distribution of 

 Agropyron repens. 



I I 



3. Agropyron pungens (Pers.) Roem. and Schult. (Fig. 442, B.) 

 Glaucous, culms 50 to 80 cm tall, with pale or brownish rhizomes; 

 blades firm, mostly involute, scabrous on the upper surface; spikelets 

 awnless, compressed, often as much as 10-flowered, the florets closely 

 imbricate ; glumes firm, acute, obscurely nerved, 

 scabrous on the keel. % — Seacoast, Maine 



(Cape Elizabeth), Mas- 

 sachusetts (Harwich), 

 Oregon (Linnton) ; in- 

 troduced from Europe. 

 4. Agropyron arenic- 

 ola Davy. (Fig. 444.) 

 Culms low, more or less 

 spreading, 10 to 20 cm 

 tall, with slender exten- 

 sively creeping rhizomes; blades involute, 

 mostly longer than the culms, pungent-pointed ; 

 spike 2 to 5 cm long, the axis glabrous; spike- 

 lets few-flowered, about 15 mm long; glumes 

 narrowly lanceolate, nerveless, firm, narrowed 

 to a pungent point, ciliolate; lemmas about 1 

 cm long, obscurely nerved, scabrous toward 

 margin and summit. % — Sandy seacoast, 

 middle California. The structure of the spike- 

 let suggests that this species may belong to 

 Elymus though the spikelets are solitary at the 

 nodes of the rachis. 



5. Agropyron smithii Rydb. Bluestem. 

 (Fig. 445.) Usually glaucous; culms erect, 30 

 to 60 cm tall, sometimes taller, with creeping 

 rhizomes; sheaths glabrous; blades firm, stiff, 

 mostly flat when fresh, involute in drying, 

 strongly nerved, scabrous or sometimes sparsely 

 villous on the upper surface, mostly 2 to 4 mm 

 wide, tapering to a sharp point; spike erect, 

 mostly 7 to 1 5 cm long, the rachis scabrous on 

 the angles; spikelets rather closely imbricate, 

 occasionally two at a node, 6- to 10-flowered, 1 

 to 2 cm long, the rachilla scabrous or scabrous- 

 pubescent; glumes rigid, tapering to a short 

 awn, rather faintly nerved, 10 to 12 mm long; 

 lemmas about 1 cm long, firm, glabrous, often 

 pubescent near the base, obscurely nerved, acu- 

 minate, mucronate, sometimes short-awned; 

 palea scabrous-pubescent on the keels. % 

 — Moist, usually alkaline soil, New York; Mich- 

 igan and Ohio to Alberta and Washington, south 

 to Texas, Arizona, and northeastern California; 

 mostly introduced east of Iowa and Kansas (fig. 

 446). Two varieties have been recognized. Agropyron smithii var. 

 m6lle (Scribn. and Smith) Jones. Lemmas and sometimes glumes more 

 or less pubescent. % — About the same range as the species. Agro- 

 pyron smithii var. palmeri (Scribn. and Smith) Heller. Lower sheaths 

 pubescent. % — Colorado to Utah, south to New Mexico and Arizona. 



r 



FIGURE 444. — Agropyron arenic 

 ola, X 1. (Davy 6781, Calif.) 



