578 POACE^. 



ing rootstock. Blades of sterile shoots flat or conduplicate, sca- 

 brous above, holding their width to near the pungent apex, 10-30 

 cm. long, 3-4 mm. wide, those of the culm 2-3 in number, 5-10 

 cm. long; ligule 2-4 mm. long. Panicle thin, open, ovate-lanceo- 

 late or linear when in fruit, 12-20 cm. long, rays scabrous, slender 

 or rather stout, the middle ones in threes, fours, or fives, the long- 

 est 4-6 cm. long, flower-bearing on the up2-)er third or half. Spike- 

 lets oval or ovate-lanceolate, 3-5-flowered, 5-7 mm. long; empty 

 glumes subequal, thin, scabrid, 4-5 mm. long, 3-nerved, linear- 

 lanc3olate, each nearly covering the floral glume above it; floral 

 glume 4-5 mm. long, scarious or pul)erulous, ovate or oval, acute 

 or obtitse, a few short hairs near the base; palea4 mm. long, linear, 

 scabrid on the keels, 2-toothed. It shades off into A. Nevadensis 

 and A. Fendleriana. 



Colorado, Vasey 653, LeUerman 13, 15, 54, etc. ; Montana, Scrib- 

 ner, Williams 5*7 8, Andetson 41 ; Nevada, Tracy; Washington. 



Var. rigida. Leaves of sterile shoots numerous, rigid, 20-40 

 cm. long. 



Utah, Jones. 



Distributed as P. tenuifolia. 



11. A. Pringleii (Scribn.). Poa Pringleii Scribn. Bull. Torr. 

 Club, 10:31 (1883). Poa Patiersoni Yasey, Contrib. U. S. Xat. 

 Herb. 1:275 (1893). 



A densely tufted strict glabrous perennial, 15-20 em. high, from 

 creeping rootstocks. Sterile shoots numerous, the blades 3-5 cm. 

 long, conduplicate, curved, smooth, 7-10 mm. diam., the apex ob- 

 tuse; leaves of the culm 1, starting below the middle of the culm; 

 ligule 2-3.5 mm. long; blades 5-12 mm. long, apex pungent or 

 obtuse. Panicle linear, strict, 2-3 cm. long, bearing few spikelets. 

 Spikelets brown and purplish, 5-7 mm. long, 3-5-flowered, linear- 

 lanceolate; empty glumes broadly lanceolate, about 5 mm. long, 

 3-nerved below, margins scarious, broad, subequal; floral glume 

 elliptical-lanceolate, 5-5.5 mm. long, minutely jmnctulate-scabrous 

 throughout; palea one-fourth shorter than its glume, 2-toothed, 

 ciliate on the keels. Spikelets variable, of a membranous or char- 



