GRASS FAMILY. 47 



awn-pointed, persistent; lower somewhat longeT than the upper. Bachilla not 

 distinctly prolonged beyond the insertion of the flower, jointed below the 



bractlet; callus very short, naked, or with a few short hairs. Bractlet mostly 

 shorter than the bracts, very thin, broad, 3 to 5-neived, obtuse or truncate and 

 toothed, awnless or with a slender, straight, twisted awn on the back usually 

 much below the apex. Palea rarely more than V., the length of the bractlet, 

 often very minute or obsolete. Scales 2, entire, minute. Stamens mostly 3. 

 Styles very short, free; stigmas feathery. (Agrostis, the Greek name for a 

 grass which mules fed on, perhaps derived from agros, a field, having reference 

 to the habitat of some species.) 

 Palea conspicuous, ]A, to 2 / 3 the length of its bractlet. 



Rootstock stoloniferous; panicle open, 6 to 8 in. long; palea l /+ to l / 2 shorter than its 



bractlet 1. A. alba 



Rootstock not stoloniferous; panicle interrupted but dense, 1 x /> to 4 in. long; palea 



about equaling its bractlet 2. A. verticxllata. 



Palea obsolete, or, if present, minute. 



Rootstock tufted, not at all stoloniferous; panicle dense and rigidly erect; spikelets 

 1 line long. 

 Panicle narrowly oblong, dense, 2 to 4 in. long, 5 to 9 lines wide; bractlet awned; 



awn about 1 line long 3. A. dcnsi flora. 



Panicle linear, 4 to 6 in. long, 3 to 4 lines wide; bractlet awnless. .. .4. A. asperifolia. 

 Rootstock slender and creeping; panicle narrow, not dense and not rigid; spikelets 

 lyi lines long. 

 Panicle 2y 2 to 5 in. long; bractlet awnless 5. A. dicgocnsis. 



1. A. alba L. var. stolonifera Auct. Creepixg'Bext. Perennial, stolonifer- 

 ous and sometimes forming a dense turf; stems decumbent at base, and rooting 

 at the lower nodes, then erect, 1 to 3 ft. high; sheaths scabrid or almost 

 smooth; ligule l 1 /? lines long, obtuse; blades 3 to 6 in. long, \\'.> lines wide, 

 acute, antrorsely scabrous; panicle open, 6 to 8 in. long, narrow; branches 

 sub-erect in y 2 whorls, the longest about 2 in. long, branched and spikelet- 

 bearing to near the base; rachis and pedicels scabrous, the latter distinctly 

 clavate; spikelets about 1 line long; bracts sub-equal, narrow, acute, scabrous 

 on the solitary nerve, widely gaping when dry; callus with a tuft of minute 

 hairs on each side; bractlet awnless, narrow-lanceolate, % to 1 line long, 

 minutely 3-toothed; nerves very indistinct; palea distinct, about y 2 line long; 

 stamens 3; anthers */> line long. — (A. stolonifera L. ?) 



Native of Europe, introduced as a pasture grass and naturalized in several 

 localities, preferring moist situations. Flats along the Kussian River near 

 Guerneville. July. 



2. A. verticillata Vill. YVhorled Bext-grass. Perennial; rootstock not sto- 

 loniferous; stems ascending from a decumbent base, 1 to 2 ft. high, rooting 

 from the lower nodes; sheaths inflated, striate; l'gule 1 to 2 lines long, obtuse, 

 scabrid; blades 2 to 4 in. long, 1 to 3 lines wide, scabrid above; panicle loosely 

 contracted. 1% to 4 in. long, 4 to 6 lines wide; branches sub-erect, whorled, 

 the longest about 1 in. long and naked at the base, the rest spikelet-bearing 

 from the base up; spikelets 1 line long, obtuse; bracts subequal, obtuse, 

 1-nerved, scabrid; callus apparently naked; bractlet */•> line long, 5-nerved and 

 prominently 5-toothed, glabrous; palea conspicuous, almost equaling the bract- 

 let, 2-nerved ; Btamens •">. 



Native of 8. Europe. Common in wot places beside springs and streams: 

 San Francisco; Stege; Berkeley; Agnews to the upper San Joaquin Valley. 



3. A. densiflora Vasey. Sea BENT. Apparently annual; stems erect OT 

 ascending from a decumbent base, ■"• to 12 in. liigh, stout, leafy; sheaths Loose 

 and inflated, smooth or scabrid; ligule 1 to 2 lines lon^, truncate; blades 2 1" 

 4 in. long, 2 to .']'._, lines wide, obtuse, scabrous; panicle narrowly oblong, 



