Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Ryegrasses or Wild-ryes (genus Elymus) are noted by their evenly spaced leaves and elongate, terminal inflorescence that recall cultivated rye or wheat. Each floret produces several long, skinny awns per the Vascular Plants of North Carolina website.
Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Commelinids: Poales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Elymus hystrix var. hystrix
FAMILY
Poaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Elymus hystrix var. hystrix
FAMILY
Poaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 029-24-001:
Hystrix patula
FAMILY
Poaceae
COMMON NAME:
Common Bottlebrush Grass, Eastern Bottlebrush-grass
Click or hover over the thumbnails to see larger pictures.
JK Marlow jkm170527_056
May McCormick County SC
Blades flat, mostly 7-15mm wide, per Manual of the Grasses of the United States.
JK Marlow jkm170527_058
May McCormick County SC
Lemmas convex, rigid, tapering into slender, straight awns 1-4cm long, per Manual of the Grasses of the United States.
JK Marlow jkm170527_061
May McCormick County SC
Awned spikelets spread at right angles to rachis; glumes absent or reduced, per How to Know the Grasses by R.W. Pohl.
COMPARE
seedheads of Bottlebrush Grass, Cereal Rye, and Virginia Wild-rye
JK Marlow jkm0406c_27
June Chester County SC
Landsford Canal State Park
Spikelets usually 2 per node of rachis, usually horizontally divergent, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas.
COMPARE
seedheads of Bottlebrush Grass, Cereal Rye, and Virginia Wild-rye
Patrick D. McMillan pdmehystrix_wm1
Month Unknown Pickens County SC
Jocassee Gorges
Rachis internodes 5-10mm, spikelets horizontally spreading toward maturity, per Manual of the Grasses of the United States.