Leymus angustus

(Trin.) Pilg.
Common names: Altai wildrye
Synonyms: Elymus angustus
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 24. Treatment on page 360.
Please click on the illustration for a higher resolution version.
Illustrator: Cindy Roché

Copyright: Utah State University

Plants somewhat cespitose, rhizomatous. Culms 60-120 cm tall, 2.5-7 mm thick, solitary or few together, glabrous or pubescent below the nodes. Leaves exceeded by the spikes, basally concentrated; sheaths smooth, scabridulous, or hairy; auricles to 1 mm; ligules 0.5-1 mm, rounded to obtuse, sometimes erose; blades 15-20 cm long, 5-7 mm wide, glaucous, stiff, involute, abaxial surfaces glabrous or hairy, sometimes scabridulous, adaxial surfaces scabrous, with 7-17 closely spaced subequal veins. Spikes 10-25 cm long, 7-10 mm wide, with 2 (3) spikelets per node; internodes 8-10 mm, surfaces strigillose, hairs to 0.3 mm, edges ciliate, cilia to 1 mm. Spikelets 10-19 mm, with 2-3 florets. Glumes 10-13 mm long, 0.5-2.5 mm wide, exceeded by the florets, narrowly lanceolate, tapering from the base, stiff, keeled, the central portion thicker than the margins, (0) 1 (3) -veined at midlength, bases expanded, overlapping, concealing the base of the lowest floret, scabrous; lemmas 8-13 mm, densely hairy and not glaucous, hairs to 0.4 mm, or glabrous and glaucous, apices unawned or awned, awns to 2.5 mm; anthers 3-4 mm, dehiscent. 2n = 84.

Discussion

Leymus angustus is a Eurasian species that, in its native range, grows in alkaline meadows, and on sand and gravel in river and lake valleys. Several cultivars of L. angustus have been developed for use as forage, particularly in Canada. Some of the better known are 'Prairieland', 'Eejay', and 'Pearl'. The distribution of L. angustus in the Flora region is not known.

Chen and Zhu (2006) describe Leymus angustus as always being puberulent. Some accessions cultivated under this name by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (Plant Introduction Numbers 110,079; 406,461), have glabrous, glaucous lemmas and glumes that tend to exceed the lemmas, suggesting that they belong to another taxon, possibly L. karelinii (Turcz.) Tzvelev, a species for which 2n = 56.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"decumbent" is not a number."/2-33/4timesthelengthof" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Leymus angustus"
hairy +  and glabrous +
membranous +  and scarious +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
0-3(7)-veined +
straight +
midlength +
hairy +, glabrous +  and pilose +
acute +, tapering +, acuminate +  and keeled +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
Mary E. Barkworth +
(Trin.) Pilg. +
0-3(7)-veined +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
straight +
midlength +
glabrous +  and pilose +
tapering +, acuminate +, acute +  and keeled +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
overlapping +
concealing +
expanded +
15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br /> (20 cm200 mm <br />0.2 m <br />) +
not evident +
cross +, linear +  and narrowly lanceolate +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
spikelike +
hairy +  and glabrous +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
Altai wildrye +
not branching +
60 cm600 mm <br />0.6 m <br /> (120 cm1,200 mm <br />1.2 m <br />) +
pubescent +  and glabrous +
10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br /> (350 cm3,500 mm <br />3.5 m <br />) +
not woody +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
Alta. +, B.C. +, Sask. +  and Yukon +
liquid +, soft +  and hard +
capillary +
pistillate +  and staminate +
2 +  and 3 +
laterally compressed +  and terete +
shorter than to longer than the adjacent florets +
10mm +  and 13mm +
subtending +
keeled +, tapering +  and lanceolate +
reduced +  and subequal +
0.5mm +  and 2.5mm +
glaucous +  and glabrous +
uncinate +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br />) +
solid +  and hollow +
15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br /> (?) +
0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
0-3(7)-veined +
glabrous +  and pilose +
tapering +, acuminate +, acute +  and keeled +
distributed +
not glaucous +  and hairy +
keeled +  and rounded +
0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br /> (1.3 cm13 mm <br />0.013 m <br />) +
stiffly membranous +  and coriaceous +
rounded +  and obtuse +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
membranous +
inconspicuous +
fleshy +  and membranous +
concealed +  and prominent +
2 +  and 1 +
hairy +  and glabrous +
well-developed +
slightly shorter than to slightly longer than the lemmas +
slightly longer +
subequal +
appressed +  and ascending +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
dry +  and fleshy +
spikelike +
scabridulous +
10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br /> (?) +  and 25 cm250 mm <br />0.25 m <br /> (?) +
pedicellate +  and sessile +
bisexual +  and sterile +
terete +  and compressed +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (1.9 cm19 mm <br />0.019 m <br />) +
1 +  and 3 +
simple +  and compound +
2 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
not papillate +
Elymus angustus +
Leymus angustus +
species +
awnlike +
membranous +
0-3(7)-veined +
awned +  and ribbed +
midlength +
glabrous +  and pilose +
7 (?) +  and 17 (?) +
tapering +, acuminate +, acute +  and keeled +
subequal +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
plant +  and cespitose +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +