HITCHCOCK AND CHASE — NORTH AMERICAN PANICUM. 265 



Panicum glabrissimum Ashe, Journ. Elisha Mitchell Soc. 15 : 62. 1898. "The type 

 material was collected by me June, 1898, at Manteo, Dare Co., N. 0." The type 

 could not be found-in Ashe's herbarium. In the Mohr Herbarium is a specimen 

 labeled in Ashe's writing "Panicum glabrissimum Ashe" and bearing the cited data. 

 This is a tuft of three vernal culms and agrees with the description, except that the 

 spikelets are said to be glabrous, while these are pubescent. The specimen in the 

 National Herbarium from the same station and sent by Ashe as part of the type 

 collection is P. tenue, and fails in several particulars to agree with the description. 

 While neither of these specimens is the type itself, the one which most nearly agrees 

 with the description is taken to represent the type. 



Panicum shallotte Ashe, Journ. Elisha Mitchell Soc. 16: 84. 1900. Based on "P. 

 glabrissimum Ashe, not P. glaberrimum Steud." 



Panicum parvipaniculatum Ashe, Journ. Elisha Mitchell Soc. 16: 87. 1900. "Col- 

 lected May 20, in Onslow county, N. C. Type material is preserved in my herba- 

 rium." No specimen so labeled could be found in Ashe's herbarium, but a cover 

 marked in Ashe's hand "P. parvipaniculatum" was found which contained eight 

 sheets of unmounted material, of which two sheets (one within the fold of the other) 

 were accompanied by a label with the following data in Ashe's writing: "Panicum 

 gray spikelets? Peaty-soiled thickets sandy flatwoods and ditch banks, 10-18 miles 

 east of Jacksonville, Onslow county, N. C. May 20, 1899." Since these were the only 

 specimens with locality and date according with those published, the specimens on 

 the sheet with the label were chosen as the type, one tuft being deposited in the 

 National Herbarium. These specimens agree with the description except that the 

 species is said to be "perfectly glabrous except the ligule" while the blades are 

 puberulent beneath and some of them on the upper surface also; that the ligule is 

 given as "about 2 mm. long," while it is almost obsolete (0.1 to 0.2 mm. long); and 

 that the spikelets are given as "barely 1 mm. long," while they measure 1.3 to 1.4 

 mm. long. This type differs from those of P. ensifolium and P. brittonii in having 

 glabrous spikelets. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Vernal plants grayish olive green; culms cespitose, slender, erect or reclining, 

 glabrous, 20 to 40 cm. high; sheaths glabrous, usually much shorter than the inter- 

 nodes; blades distant, often reflexed, 1 to 3 cm. long, 1.5 to 3 mm. wide, glabrous 

 on the upper surface or puberulent toward the base, puberulent beneath, at least 

 toward the tip; panicles finally long-exserted, 1.5 to 4 cm. long, nearly as wide, the 

 flexuous branches spreading or the lower reflexed; spikelets 1.3 to 1.5 mm. long, 

 elliptic, subacute, glabrous or puberulent; first glume one- 

 fourth as long as the spikelet or less, acute or obtuse; second 

 glume slightly shorter than the fruit and sterile lemma; fruit 

 1.2 mm. long, elliptic, subacute. 



Autumnal culms spreading or reclining, sparingly branch- 

 ing, from the middle nodes, the branches mostly remaining 



simple; winter blades glabrous, usually short, 1.5 to 3 cm. 

 FIG. 291 -P. ensifolium. , 2 tQ 4 cm wide 



From type specimen. J° ' 



In this species the pubescence of the spikelets seems to 



be very inconstant. The type of P. brittonii and Chase 3557 have pubescent spike- 

 lets, while Chase 3535 and specimens collected by Clute in 1899 and by Bicknell in 

 1900, also in New Jersey, have glabrous spikelets; of the North Carolina specimens 

 Hitchcock 1425, Chase 3096J, 317G, 3177, 3227, and 3234 have pubescent spikelets. 

 . Combs's no. 74, Lake City, Florida, and Tracy 44, Ocean Springs, Mississippi, two 

 very slender autumnal specimens, the first with puberulent, the latter with glabrous, 

 spikelets, are doubtfully referred here. 



