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| GRASSES
OF THE COLUMBIA BASIN OF BRITISH COLUMBIA |
=need a magnifying glass to view |
Species key |
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| Agropyron- Adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | |
| 1a. Spikelet spreading from the stem axis 30° or more;
the distance between the spikelets is less than 1 mm |
Agropyron cristatum |
| 1b. Spikelet is pressed to the stem axis < 30°; the
distance between the spikelets is greater than 1mm |
Agropyron fragile |
| Agrostis- Adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | ||
| 1a. Rhizomes or stolons absent | 2 | |
| 2a. Flowerhead open with branches spreading; has very few spikelets on lower ½ of the branches; palea absent or less than ¼ as long as lemma | Agrostis scabra | |
| 2b. Flowerhead constricted or with branches
pressed close to the axis; branches may barely be visible |
3 | |
| 3a. Palea present, ½ as long as lemma. Plants of subalpine and alpine zones | Agrostis humilis | |
| 3b. Palea absent, if present a minute membrane | 4 | |
| 4a. Lemmas awnless | Agrostis variabilis | |
| 4b. Lemmas awned from the back | Agrostis exarata | |
| 1b. Rhizomes or stolons present; flowerhead
open with branches spreading; very few spikelets on lower ½ of the branches. Palea present, ½ as long as lemma |
5 | |
| 5a. Stolons present, no rhizomes | Agrostis stolonifera | |
| 5b. Stolons absent, rhizomes present | 6 | |
| 6a. Ligules 2-6 mm; rhizomes abundant and long | Agrostis gigantea | |
| 6b. Ligules up to 2mm | Agrostis capillaris | |
| Alopecurus Adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | |
| 1a. Straight awn arising from near middle of the lemma; extended less than 1.5 mm longer than the glumes | Alopecurus aequalis |
| 1b. Bent awn arising arising from lower third of the
lemma; extended more than 1.5 mm beyond the glumes |
Alopecurus geniculatus |
| Avena Adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | |
| 1a. Lemmas are hairy with bent awns on the lower two lemmas; awns extend from the spikelet | Avena fatua |
| 1b. Lemmas are smooth with straight awns on the lower lemmas or are awnless | Avena sativa |
| Bromus-Adapted from Pavlick (1995) | |
| 1a. Spikelets compressed, lemmas keeled | 2 |
| 2a. Plants annual or biennial | Bromus carinatus |
| 2b. Plants perennial | 3 |
| 3a. Lowermost flowerhead branches over 10 cm long and spreading; bearing one or two large spikelets at the branch ends | Bromus sitchensis |
| 3b. Lowermost flowerhead branches shorter, bearing spikelets along the branch | 4 |
| 4a. Plants of disturbed areas inland | Bromus aleutensis |
| 4b. Plants of native grasslands | Bromus marginatus |
| 1b. Spikelets not compressed, lemmas more or less rounded | 5 |
| 5a. Plants perennial | 6 |
| 6a Creeping rhizomes present; lemma awnless or with awn up to 6 mm long; auricles present | 7 |
| 7a. Stem nodes smooth; leaves smooth | Bromus inermis |
| 7b. Stem nodes hairy; leaves with short dense hairs | Bromus pumpellianus |
| 6b. Creeping rhizomes absent, lemmas awned | 8 |
| 8a. Awns 6-12 mm long | Bromus vulgaris |
| 8b. Awns less than 6 mm long | 9 |
| 9a. Sheaths often hairy near the junction of leaf blades and sheaths | Bromus richardsonii |
| 9b. Sheaths not hairy near the junction of leaf blades and sheaths | 10 |
| 10a. Lemmas smooth across the back | Bromus ciliatus |
| 10b. Lemmas hairy across the back | Bromus anomalus |
| 5b.Plants annual | 11 |
| 11a. Spikelets are wedge-shaped wider at the top; awn is usually longer than the lemma | Bromus tectorum |
| 11b. Spikelets are oval to lance-shaped; awn is as long as or shorter than the lemma | |
| 12a. Lemmas awnless; spikelets oval shaped | Bromus briziformis |
| 12b. Lemma awn 2-13 mm long; spikelets narrower | 13 |
| 13a Lemmas papery with prominent raised ridges | Bromus hordeaceus |
| 13b. Lemmas leathery with ridges but not raised | 14 |
| 14a. Flowerhead branches not flexuous but stiffly spreading; awns straight | Bromus commutatus |
| 14b. Flowerhead branches lax or flexuous; awns bent away from the axis | Bromus japonicus |
| Calamagrostis adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | |
| 1a. Lemma awns extending beyond glume tips, twisted and bent | 2 |
| 2a. Glumes 4-5 mm long; leaf sheaths hairy on collars | Calamagrostis rubescens |
| 2b. Glumes 4.5-8 mm long; leaf sheaths finely hairy
or rough but smooth on the leaf collars |
Calamagrostis purpurascens |
| 1b. Lemma awns not reaching glume tips or barely extending beyond glume tips | 3 |
| 3a. Flowerhead loose branches spreading; callus hairs abundant, ½ as long as lemmas | Calamagrostis canadensis |
| 3b. Flowerhead contracted, branches pressed close to the axis | 4 |
| 4a. Callus hairs ½ as long as lemmas; awns straight to twisted | Calamagrostis stricta |
| 4b. Callus less than ½ length of the lemmas; awns twisted and bent | Calamagrostis montanensis |
| Danthonia Adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | |
| 1a. Lemma length less than 6 mm; lemmas more or less hairy over the back as well as along the edge |
Danthonia spicata |
| 1b. Lemma length greater than 6 mm; lemmas smooth over the bac | 2 |
| 2a. Flowerhead branches spreading at right angles; lower branches
as long as or longer than the spikelets |
Danthonia californica |
| 2b. Flowerhead branches pressed close to the axis; lower branches
are shorter than the spikelet length |
3 |
| 3a. Lower branch has more than one or more spikelets | Danthonia intermedia |
| 3b. Lower branch with only one spikelet | Danthonia unispicata |
| Deschampsia Adapted from Douglas et al. (1994) | |
| 1a. Plants annuals | Deschampsia danthonioide |
| 1b. Plants perennials; plants densely tufted | 2 |
| 2a. Leaves flat or slightly inrolled and 1.5 -4 mm wide | Deschampsia cespitosa |
| 2b. Leaves narrow less than 1.5 mm wide | Deschampsia elongata |
| Elymus Adapted from Mary Barkworth (1999) | ||
| 1a. One spikelet at each node but occasionally paired at the lowest nodes | 2 | |
| 2a. Plants tufted, short or no rhizome | 3 | |
| 3a. Glumes widest at or above the middle | 4 | |
| 4a. Glumes widest near the tip with transparent margins more than 0.5 mm wide; glumes smooth | Elymus alaskanus | |
| 4b. Glumes widest at the middle with transparent margins about 0.3 mm wide; glumes | Elymus trachycaulus | |
| 3b. Glumes linear to lance-shaped and the transparent margins are 0.1-0.2 mm wide | Elymus glaucus | |
| 2b. Plants with strong rhizomes | ||
| 5a. Glumes are strongly keeled | Elymus repens | |
| 5b. Glumes are weakly keeled or with no keel at all | Elymus lanceolatus | |
| 1b. Spikelets 2,3 to 5 at each node | ||
| 6a. Central axis of the flowerhead disintegrates at maturity | Elymus elymoides | |
| 6b. Central axis of the flowerhead does not disintegrate at maturity | 7 | |
| 7b. The edges of the glumes are not transparent | Elymus canadensis | |
| 7a. The edges of the glumes are transparent | 8 | |
| 8a. The lemmas have hairs along the veins
with the longest hairs along the edges and the awns curve slightly outward; spikes are flexous |
Elymus hirsutus | |
| 8b. The lemmas are smooth or with very sparse short hairs; awns are straight; spikes are straight | Elymus glaucus |
| Festuca Adapted from Douglas et al. 1994 | ||
| 1a. Flowerhead appears as a dense one sided spike; spikelet branches very short; stem densely hairy below the flowerhead | Festuca baffinensis | |
| 1b. Flowerheads not as above but have branches | 2 | |
| 2a. Leaf sheaths with auricles | 3 | |
| 3a. Auricles with scattered hair along the edge; stems coarse and reed-like | Festuca arundinacea | |
| 3b. Auricles without scattered hair | Festuca pratensis | |
| 2b. Leaf sheaths without auricles | 4 | |
| 4a. Rhizomes present (may be short); leaf sheaths reddish and fibrous | Fescue rubra | |
| 4b. Rhizomes absent; leaf sheaths not shredding into fibers | 5 | |
| 5a. Lemma awns half as long to longer than the lemma body | 6 | |
| 6a. Leaf blades flat or loosely inrolled (3-8 mm wide); | Festuca subuliflora | |
| 6b. Leaf blades mostly inrolled (less than 2 mm wide) | 7 | |
| 7a. Spikelet axis (rachilla) visible between flowers; glumes not sharply pointed but more rounded tip with some hairs along the edge | Festuca idahoensis | |
| 7b. Spikelet axis (rachilla) not visible between flowers; glumes sharply pointed, not hairs along the edge | Festuca occidentalis | |
| 5b. Lemma awns less than half as long as the lemma body | 8 | |
| 8a. Stem nodes not extended from leaf sheaths; dead sheaths breaking off at the collars and leaving sheaths than remain for years; living sheaths usually purple | Festuca campestris | |
| 8b. Stem nodes extended from leaf sheaths | 9 | |
| 9a. Glumes keeled or rounded | 10 | |
| 10a. Dead leaf sheaths not prominent at the base of the sheaths but split into long fibers; plant of subalpine/ alpine | Festuca viridula | |
| 10b. Dead leaf sheaths prominent and not splitting into long fibers; rare introduction at lower elevations | Festuca trachyphylla | |
| 9b. Glumes not keeled | 11 | |
| 11a. Leaf blades rounded in crossection | Festuca saximontana | |
| 11b. Leaf blades angular in crossection | 12 | |
| 12a. Leaves fine almost hair-like; dead sheaths not prominent at the base; living sheaths are open to the base of the plant | Festuca minutiflora | |
| 12b. Leaves narrow but not hair-like; dead sheaths more or less prominent at the base of the plants and splitting; living sheaths closed for half their length | Festuca brachyphylla |
| Glyceria- Adapted from Hickman 1993 and Cody 1996 | |
| 1a. Spikelets linear or cylindric in outline; branches pressed close to the axis | 2 |
| 2a. Lemma smooth between slightly rough veins | Glyceria borealis |
| 2b. Lemma rough throughout and distinctly rough on the veins | Glyceria leptostachya |
| 1b. Spikelets oval in outline; branches spreading outward | 3 |
| 3a. Glumes 1.5-2.3 mm long | 4 |
| 4a. Lemma purplish and widest at or below the middle | Glyceria grandis |
| 4b. Lemma purplish, whitish or brown; widest above the middle with broad rough edges | Glyceria pulchella |
| 3b. Glumes less than 1.5 mm long | 5 |
| 5a. Lower glume less than 1mm long; lemmas small, prominently nerved | Glyceria striata |
| 5b. Lower glume 1.0- 1.5 mm long | Glyceria elata |
| Hordeum Adapted from Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Flowerhead including awns nearly as wide as it is long | Hordeum jubatum |
| 1b. Flowerhead including awns is much longer than broad | Hordeum brachyantherum |
| Lolium Adapted from Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Lemmas awnless | Lolium perenne |
| 1b. Lemmas awned | Lolium multiflorum |
| Leymus Adapted from Barkworth in Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Plants with a strong rhizome; lemmas obviously and evenly hairy across the back | Leymus innovatus |
| 1b. Plants tufted, short or no rhizome; lemmas smooth or with scattered hairs across the back | Leymus cinereus |
| Melica Adapted from Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Lemmas awned | Melica smithii |
| 1b. Lemmas unawned or awns are inconspicuous | 2 |
| 2a. Lemmas tapering with a long sharp tip; lemmas hairy along the veins | Melica subulata |
| 2b. Lemmas rounded; lemmas smooth or appear rough | 3 |
| 3a. Glumes less than half the length of the spikelets; corms not clustered, but remain attached to the | Melica spectabilis |
| 3b.Glumes more than half the length of the spikelets; corms clustered, not attached to the rhizome | Melica bulbosa |
| Muhlenbergia Adapted from Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Flowerhead spread open and branching; branchlets long and very slender | Muhlenbergia asperifolia |
| 1b. Flowerhead narrow (less than 2.5 cm wide); branchlets short, pressed close to the flowerhead axis | 2 |
| 2a. Lemmas not hairy at the base; leaves narrow | 3 |
| 3a. Perennial with rhizomes; stems with nodules | Muhlenbergia richardsonis |
| 3b. Annual; stems often rooting at lower nodes | Muhlenbergia filiformis |
| 2b. Lemmas hairy or bearded at the base; leaves 2-6 mm wide | 4 |
| 4a. Lemma hairs long (2-3 mm); lemmas awned | Muhlenbergia andina |
| 4b. Lemma hairs short (less than 1.5 mm); lemmas awn tipped | Muhlenbergia glomerata |
| Piptatherum Adapted from Barkworth 1999 | |
| 1a. Awns 1-2 mm long and absent at maturity | Piptatherum pungens |
| 1b. Awns 3-15 mm long and remain attached at maturity | 2 |
| 2a. Flowerhead branches are spread; awns are straight but twisted | Piptatherum micranthum |
| 2b. Flowerhead branches pressed close to the flowerhead axis; awns strongly bent | Piptatherum exiguum |
| Panicum | ||
| 1a. Plants annual; lemma tip pointed | Panicum capillare | |
| 1b. Plants perennial; lemma tip rounded or blunt | 2 | |
| 2a. Spikelets 3.2 mm. long | Panicum oligosanthes var. scribnerianum | |
| 2b. Spikelets rarely 2 mm. long | Panicum occidentale | |
| Phleum Adapted from. Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Flowerhead a short wide cylinder (1-4.5 cm long); stem not bulbous at the base | Phleum alpinum |
| 1b. Flowerhead a long narrow cylinder (4.5-13 cm long); stem bulbous at the base | Phleum pratense |
| Poa Adapted from Hickman 1993 | ||
| 1a. Spikelets producing leafy bulblets in place of normal flowers | 2 | |
| 2a. Plants tufted with bulbous stem bases; leaves soft and soon withering | Poa bulbosa | |
| 2b. Plants with rhizomes; broader leaf blades | Poa pratensis | |
| 1b. Spikelets not producing bulblets | 3 | |
| 3a. Plants annual | Poa annua | |
| 3b. Plants perennia | 4 | |
| 4a. Rhizomes or stolons present | 5 | |
| 5a. Stem and nodes compressed; appear flattened; leaf sheaths open to near the base | Poa compressa | |
| 5b. Stem and nodes not compressed | 6 | |
| 6a. Callus cobwebby or not; or with a short tuft of hairs; but lemma has hairs | 7 | |
| 7a. Flowers contain only female or pistillate flowers | Poa wheeleri | |
| 7b. Flowers have both anthers and stigma | Poa arctica | |
| 6b. Callus cobwebby; hairs may be short; lemma keel and veins hairy | 8 | |
| 8a. Lower glume three veined | Poa palustris | |
| 8b. Lower glume one veined | Poa leptocoma | |
| 4b. Rhizomes or stolons absent | 9 | |
| 9a. Callus cobwebby | 10 | |
| 10a. Lower glume generally three veined; sheaths open 4/5 length | 11 | |
| 11a. Ligule of upper stem leaf blunt | Poa nemoralis | |
| 11b. Ligule of upper stem leaf sharply pointed | Poa palustris | |
| 10b. Lower glume one veined; sheaths open less than ¾ length | 12 | |
| 12a. Anthers less than 1 mm; high montane to alpine | Poa leptocoma | |
| 12b. Anthers greater than 1.3 mm; plants of lowland | Poa trivialis | |
| 9b. Callus not cobwebby but may have with a ring of short hairs | ||
| 13a. Spikelets broadly rounded at the base; flowerhead pyramid-like | Poa alpina | |
| 13b. Spikelets lance-shaped or cylinder-shaped in outline | 14 | |
| 14 a. Spikelet not compressed; lemma with weak keel | Poa secunda | |
| 14b. Spikelet compressed; oval in outline; lemma keeled to base | 15 | |
| 15 a. Leaves soft and slightly inrolled to flat | 16 | |
| 16 a. Ligule short and blunt on upper stem leaves | Poa glauca | |
| 16b. Ligule sharply pointed on upper stem leaves | Poa stenantha | |
| 15b. Leaves are stiff, inrolled and sometimes folded | Poa cusickii |
| Puccinellia Adapted from Cody. 1996 | |
| 1a. Glumes more or less keeled and sparsely hairy; lemmas pointed | Puccinellia nuttalliana |
| 1b. Glumes not keeled; lemmas blunt; | Puccinellia distans |
| Stipa Adapted from M. Barkworth, 1999, and Douglas et al.1994 | ||
| 1a. Callus sharp, 2.5-5 mm long; flowers 4-25 cm long; awns 4-30 mm long (Hesperostipa) | 2 | |
| 2a. Lemmas evenly hairy at maturity; tip of the awns usually flexible and at right angles to the flower axis; ligules of the basal leaves thin | Stipa comata | |
| 2b. Lemmas with lines of hair or evenly hairy at maturity; tip of the awn usually straight and are parallel to the flower axis despite a bend lower down on the awn; ligules of the basal leaves thick | ||
| 3a. Lemmas 12-16 mm long; awns 10-17 mm long; lower stem nodes hairy..................................................................................... | Stipa spartea | |
| 3b. Lemmas 7-11 mm long; awns 5-9 mm long; lower stem nodes smooth | Stipa curtiseta | |
| 1b. Callus blunt to sharp, less than 2 mm long; awns up to 8 cm long (Achnatherum) | 4 | |
| 4a. Flowerhead branches open and spreading | 5 | |
| 5a. Awns are less than 1 mm long and fall off at maturity | Stipa hymenoides | |
| 5b. Awns greater than 1 mm long and remaining attached at maturity | Stipa richardsonii | |
| 4b. Flowerhead branches pressed close to the axis and pointed upwards | 6 | |
| 6a. First segment of the awns hairy with hairs about 1 mm long | Stipa occidentalis | |
| 6b. First segment of the awns rough with hairs less than 0.5 mm long | Stipa nelsonii | |
| Trisetum Adapted from Douglas et al. 1994 | |
| 1a. Lemmas awnless or with awns that rarely exceed 1 mm | Trisetum wolfii |
| 1b. Lemmas awned; awns exceed the length of the lemmas | 2 |
| 2a. Flowerhead is spikelike, dense; basal leaf sheaths are hairy and upper glume is not much longer than the lower one (almost equal) | Trisetum spicatum |
| 2b. Flowerhead is not spikelike but is open and loose; basal leaf sheaths are smooth and the upper glume is much longer than the lower one | Trisetum cernuum |
| Vulpia Adapted from Hickman. 1993 | |
| 1a. Spikelets with four to eleven closely overlapping flowers; spikelet axis hidden; lemma awn less than 7 mm | Vulpia octoflora |
| 1b. Spikelets with two to six loosely overlapping flowers; spikelet axis visible; lemma awn 5-13 mm | Vulpia microstachys |
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BC Museum |
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