G116 



NEEDLE-AND-THREAD 



Sti'pa coma'ta 



Flower head (panicle) 5 to 10 in. long, 

 open, often loosely spreading, the base 

 usually enclosed by uppermost .leaf 

 sheath 





Individual flower groups (spikelets) 

 1-flowered, borne toward the ends of 

 panicle branches 



ib 



id? 



falls 



Outer flower bract (lemma) firm, pale,, 

 without tuft of hairs at apex, about }i 

 in. long, awn-tipped; awn securely at- 

 tached, commonly 4 to 5 (occasionally 

 9) in. long, wavy and indistinctly bent, 

 the lower part tightly twisted and 

 sparsely short-hairy, the upper part 

 harsh and hairless 



"Seed" (caryopsis) hard, cylindrical, 

 with a long, sharp-pointed, bearded 

 base (callus), closely enfolded by lemma 



Stalks (culms) 1 to 4 ft. high, erect, 

 rather stout, leafy. 



Leaves harsh, flat or with inrolled 

 edges; sheaths loose, hairless, the up- 

 permost inflated; collar (ligule), at 

 junction of blade and sheath, conspic- 

 uous, K to % in. long 



Roots fibrous 



/ *- Lowest (2) spikelet bracts (glumes) 

 J nearly equal, about % to 1 in. > long, 

 . / / 5-nerved, papery, narrow,' tapering to 

 l/\| soft bristlelike point, persistent after 

 "" 



