34 . (iKA.MINE^. 



Spikelets broad; nerves of bracts dark green, mid-nerve curved inwards 



above ; wings broad, white 1. -P- Cano»-ie»i«w, 



Spikelets narrow; nerves of bracts pale green, mid-nerve straight trom ft 



little above the base ; wings nanow, pale green . . . 2. P. Caroliniana. 



Rudimentary bracilet 1 only ; thyrse from ovoid-oblong to oblong-cylindrical. 



Spikelets ovate ; nerves of bracts dark green mid-nerve curved inwards 



from below the middle ; wings narrow, white .... 3. P. minor. 



Spikelets of secondary branches of the thyrse imperfect or abortive, giving a 



gnawed appearance to the lower part of the thyrse; wing of bract tei-mi- 



nating in aliorn 4- P.paradoxa. 



Spikelets all perfect ; bracts wingless or only slightly winged, keeled ; annuals 

 or perennials. ,., ^. „,,, 



Annual ; 154 to 3 ft. high ; thyrse cylindrical, almost spikelike, mostly 2% to 

 4 in long ; bracts keeled ; flower-enclosing bractlet abruptly acuminate. 



5. P. Lemmoni. 

 Perennial ; stems 3 to 8 ft, high ; inflorescence usually purplish ; bracts 

 strongly keeled ; flower-enclosing bractlet acuminate. 



Thyrse oblong, 1 to 2 in. long, usually dense 6. P. amethystina. 



Panicle 3 to 6 or even 9 in long, usually much interrupted or lobed .... 



7. P.arundinacea. 



1. P. Canariensis L. Casary-srass. Annual; stems erect, 1 to 

 3 ft. high, leafy; uppermost sheaths much inflated; ligule 2 to 3J 

 lines long; blades 6 to 9 in. long, IJ to 5 lines wide; thyrse 1 to IJ in. 

 long, I in. to | in. wide, ovoid, dense, uninterrupted; spikelets 2J to 3 

 lines long, laterally flattened, ohovate, abruptly pointed; bracts sub- 

 equal, acute, broadly keeled from below the iryddle; keel nearly J line 

 wide, broadly white-margined, the mid-nerve curved inwards above; 

 empty braetlets 2, about 1 line long, narrow, smooth; flower-enclosing 

 bractlet about 2 lines long, pubescent when young, glabrous in age. 



Native of Europe, reported as occurring sparingly near settlements 

 in several localities within our limits. San Francisco, Bolander. 

 Apr. The well-known " Canary.-grass, " a favorite bird-seed, much 

 cultivated in the south of Europe. 



2. P. Caroliniana Walt. Southern Oanary-grass. Annual; 

 stems slender, erect, 1 to 2 ft. high; uppermost sheaths somewhat 

 inflated; ligule 1\ to 2 lines long, decurrent, obtuse or truncate, 

 broad, completely enveloping the stem and folded over itself; blades 

 IJ to 4J in. long, 2J to 4| lines wide, acute, smooth; thyrse 1 to 2 in. 

 long, ovoid; spikelets 2J to 3 lines long; bracts acute, the mid-nerve 

 straight from a little above the base, nerves and keel conoolorous, pale 

 green; empty braetlets about 1 line long, pubescent; flower-enclosing 

 bractlet acuminate, pubescent. 



Native of the southeastern States, and apparently not indigenous 

 with us. Oakland, Bolander; Araquipa Rancho, Vaeaville, Jepsoii. 

 Apr.-May. Much less common than is generally supposed, P. minor 

 being often mistaken for it, both in the field and in herbaria. 



3. P. minor Eetz. Small Canary-qrass. An erect, glabrous, 

 leafy annual, from 7J in. to 3 ft. high, according to locality and 

 season, branched sometimes from every node except the uppermost; 

 upper sheaths sometimes glaucescent, much dilated, with a broad, 

 scarious margin; ligule large, 1 to 3 or even i\ lines long, entire, 

 obtuse; blades i\ to 13 in. long, 4J to 7J lines wide; in small' speci- 

 mens only 2 to 3 in. long, and 3 lines wide; thyrse very dense and 



