GENERA OF GRASSES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



201 



presence of coumarin. The Indians use the grass to make fragrant 



baskets. 



Torresfa alpina (Swartz) Hitchc., with small, condensed panicles 



and awned staminate florets, is arctic and extends to the alpine peaks 



of New York and New England; T. 

 macrophylla (Thurb.) Hitchc., with 

 broad blades, is Californian. 



100. ANTHOXANTHUM L, 



Spik'elets with 1 terminal perfect 

 floret and 2 sterile lemmas, the rachilla 

 disarticulating above the glumes, the 

 sterile lemmas falling attached to the 

 fertile floret; glumes unequal, acute 

 or mucronate; sterile lemmas shorter 

 than the glumes, empty, awned from 

 the back; fertile lemma shorter than 

 the sterile ones, awnless; palea 1- 

 nerved, rounded on the back, inclosed 

 in the lemma. 



Sweet-smelling annual or perennial 

 grasses, with flat blades and spikelike 

 panicles. Species about four, 

 Europe and Asia; two intro- 

 duced into the United States. 



Type species : Anthoxanthwtn 

 odoratum L. 



Anthoxanthum L., Sp. PI. 28, 

 1753; Gen. PI., ed. 5, 17. 1754. 

 Linnaeus describes three species, 

 A. odoratum, A. indicum, and A. 

 paniculatum. The first is chosen 

 as the type. The second species is 

 now referred to Perotis and the 

 third to Festuca. 



FIG. 119. Vanilla grass, Torresia odorata. Plant, X \ ; spikelet, florets with the glumes 

 'removed, and fertile floret, X 5. 



Anthoxanthum odoratum, sweet vernal grass (PI. XV; fig. 120), is 

 sometimes included in meadow mixtures to give fragrance to the hay. 



