Festuca edlundiae

HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped densely. Rhizomes absent. Butt sheaths green; persistent and investing base of culm; with compacted dead sheaths. Basal innovations intravaginal. Culms erect; 2.5–14 cm long. Culm-nodes glabrous. Leaf-sheaths open for most of their length; longer than adjacent culm internode; without keel; glabrous on surface. Leaf-sheath oral hairs lacking. Leaf-sheath auricles erect. Ligule a ciliolate membrane; 0.2–0.5 mm long. Collar glabrous. Leaf-blades conduplicate; 1.5–9 cm long; 0.5–0.9 mm wide; 1.5–3.5 cm long at summit of culm; light green. Leaf-blade venation comprising 5–7 vascular bundles; with 5 inner ridges; with sclerenchyma strands below veins; with 3–5 subepidermal sclerenchyma strands; with subepidermal sclerenchyma free from veins; without layer of subepidermal sclerenchyma masking vein striation. Leaf-blade surface puberulous; hairy adaxially, or on both sides.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle; subtended by an inflated leaf-sheath.

Panicle contracted; linear; dense; 1.5–3.5 cm long; with spikelets clustered towards branch tips. Primary panicle branches appressed; 1–2 -nate; 0.4–0.7 cm long; bearing 1–2 fertile spikelets on each lower branch; naked below to bearing spikelets almost to the base.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 2–6 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets laterally compressed; 4.5–8.5 mm long; 3–4 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes scaberulous.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; dissimilar. Lower glume 1.8–3.1 mm long; 1 -veined. Lower glume surface glabrous. Lower glume margins ciliate. Upper glume 2.9–4.3 mm long; 3 -veined. Upper glume surface glabrous. Upper glume margins ciliate.

FLORETS Fertile lemma 3.6–5.2 mm long; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma lateral veins obscure. Lemma surface puberulous; hairy above. Lemma apex awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 1.1–2.9 mm long overall. Palea 3.8–5.5 mm long. Palea surface pubescent; hairy on back. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Lodicules 2; 0.8–1 mm long; glabrous. Anthers 3; 0.6–1.1 mm long. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; 2.5–3 mm long; glabrous. Hilum linear.

DISTRIBUTION North America: Subarctic.

NOTES Poeae. Aitken 2000.

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