Bush — A New Genus of Grasses. 



179 



Culms prostrate and creeping, 

 rooting at the nodes, sending up 

 branches 5-15 cm. long; stems 

 and especially the upper sheaths 

 densely short-pilose ; leaves short, 

 flat, thick, spreading or ascend- 

 ing, 1-3 cm. long, 1.5-3 mm. 

 wide, lanceolate, pubescent; pan- 

 icle 2-3 cm. * long, nearly or 

 quite as broad, oval, subcapitate; 

 spikelets crowded, clustered; pis- 

 tillate spikelets longer and more 

 narrow than the staminate, 2-4 

 cm. long, and 2-3 mm. wide, 

 25-100-flowered ; lower scales 

 unequal, awl-shaped, the lowest 

 1 mm. long, 1-nerved, the 

 upper 1.5 mm. long, 3-nerved; 

 flowering scales 3 mm. long, 

 closely appressed, long-acumi- 

 nate, the tips spreading in fruit, 



densely pubescent, 3-nerved; staminate spikelets shorter, wider, 



more spreading, 1-2 cm. 

 long and 2-4 mm. wide, 

 1 5-40-flo wered ; lower 

 scales unequal, awl-shaped, 

 1-nerved, the lower about 

 1 mm. long, the upper 

 1.5 mm. long; flowering 

 scales 3 mm. long, spread- 

 ing, acute, but tips less 

 spreading, densely pubes- 

 cent, strongly 3-nerved. — 

 In wet, sandy soil along 

 streams, Nebraska to 

 Kansas, Arkansas, Texas, 

 Louisiana, New Mexico, 

 Mexico, Porto Kico, Cen- 

 tral and South America. — Plates VII, VIII, 



PISTILLATE 8PIKELET. 



STAMINATE 8PIKELET. 



