Festuca rubra

HABIT Perennial; culms solitary, or caespitose; clumped loosely. Cataphylls inconspicuous. Rhizomes absent, or short; fleshy; not obviously scaly. Basal innovations extravaginal, or intravaginal. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; slender; straight; 15–90 cm long; 1–3 -noded; without nodal roots. Culm-internodes terete. Culm-nodes without exudate; glabrous. Lateral branches lacking. Leaves mostly basal; 0–1 per branch. Leaf-sheaths tight; unthickened at base; tubular for much of their length; without keel; striately veined; glabrous on surface, or pubescent. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.2 mm long; membranous; white; entire; truncate. Leaf-blade base symmetrical. Leaf-blades straight; filiform; conduplicate; angular in section; 3–40 cm long; 0.5–1(–2) mm wide; coriaceous; flaccid; mid-green. Leaf-blade midrib indistinct. Leaf-blade venation indistinct; comprising 5–7 vascular bundles; with subepidermal sclerenchyma strands similar in size; with subepidermal sclerenchyma free from veins; without layer of subepidermal sclerenchyma masking vein striation. Leaf-blade surface smooth, or scabrous; glabrous. Leaf-blade margins smooth; glabrous. Leaf-blade apex obtuse, or abruptly acute.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle; with 1 peduncles per sheath. Peduncle terete; eglandular; smooth; glabrous.

Panicle open, or contracted; lanceolate, or oblong; continuous; dense; straight; 3–17 cm long; bearing many spikelets, or few spikelets. Primary panicle branches appressed, or ascending; sparsely divided; bearing spikelets almost to the base. Panicle branches straight, or arcuate; angular; scabrous.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels 1–5 mm long.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 3–9 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets elliptic, or oblong; laterally compressed; 5–14 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Spikelet callus glabrous. Rhachilla internodes smooth. Floret callus glabrous.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; dissimilar; subequal in width; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; 2–4 mm long; 0.7–0.8 length of upper glume; chartaceous; light green; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume oblong; 3–5 mm long; 0.7–0.8 length of adjacent fertile lemma; chartaceous; mid-green; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Fertile lemma ovate; symmetrical; 4–6 mm long; chartaceous; dark green; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface scaberulous; rough above; glabrous, or puberulous, or pubescent. Lemma apex acute; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn stiff; 0.5–3 mm long overall. Palea 1 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Palea keels scaberulous; adorned above. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Lodicules 2. Anthers 3; 2–3 mm long. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; glabrous. Hilum linear; 1 length of caryopsis.

DISTRIBUTION Europe: northern, central, southwestern, southeastern, and eastern. Africa: north and Macaronesia. Asia-temperate: Siberia, Soviet far east, Soviet Middle Asia, Caucasus, western Asia, Arabia, China, Mongolia, and eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: India. Australasia: Australia and New Zealand. Pacific: north-central. North America: Subarctic, western Canada, eastern Canada, northwest USA, north-central USA, northeast USA, southwest USA, south-central USA, southeast USA, and Mexico. South America: Mesoamericana, western South America, and southern South America. Antarctic: Subantarctic islands.

NOTES Poeae. Stancik 2005.

Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.