Muhlenbergia longiligula

Hitchc.
Common names: Longtongue muhly
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 25. Treatment on page 187.

Plants perennial; cespitose, not rhizomatous. Culms 60-130 cm, stout, erect; internodes mostly smooth, sometimes scabridulous below the nodes. Sheaths shorter or longer than the internodes, smooth or scabridulous, not becoming spirally coiled, basal sheaths rounded; ligules 10-30 mm, firm and brown basally, membranous distally, acuminate to obtuse; blades (10) 20-65 cm long, 3-6 mm wide, flat or inrolled at the margins, scabrous abaxially, scabridulous or smooth adaxially. Panicles 15-55 cm long, 1-15 cm wide, contracted to open, greenish-tan to purplish; primary branches 3-13 cm, narrowly ascending or diverging up to 60° from the rachises, stiff, spikelet-bearing to the base, lower branches with 30-60 spikelets; pedicels 0.1-2.5 mm, usually shorter than the spikelets, scabridulous or smooth, strongly divergent. Spikelets 2-3.5 mm. Glumes subequal, 2-3.5 mm, usually longer than the florets, scabridulous or smooth, 1 (2) -veined, acute to acuminate, usually unawned, rarely awned, awns to 0.2 mm; lemmas 2-2.9 mm, oblongelliptic, tan to purplish, smooth or scabridulous, apices acute, often bifid, teeth to 0.2 mm, unawned or awned, awns to 2 mm; paleas 2-3 mm, oblongelliptic, scabridulous or smooth, acute; anthers 1-2.1 mm, yellowish to purplish. Caryopses 1.1-1.5 mm, fusiform, reddish-brown. 2n = 22, 24, 29, 30.

Discussion

Muhlenbergia longiligula grows on rocky slopes, canyons, and rock outcrops derived from volcanic or calcareous parent materials, at elevations of 1220-2500 m. It is a common species in Arizona and southwestern New Mexico, and extends into northwestern Mexico. It may be confused with M. emersleyi, but differs from that species in its rounded basal leaf sheaths, glabrous lemmas, and panicle branches that are spikelet-bearing to the base. It is also similar to M. lindheimeri, but differs in its rounded basal sheaths.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"decumbent" is not a number.

... more about "Muhlenbergia longiligula"
30 +, 29 +, 24 +  and 22 +
yellowish +  and purplish +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.21 cm2.1 mm <br />0.0021 m <br />) +
Paul M. Peterson +
Hitchc. +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
sinuous +, flexuous +  and straight +
multiple +, , +  and single +
curled +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
not fused +
intravaginal +, extravaginal +, branching +  and basal +
swelling +
membranous +
not pseudopetiolate +
20 cm200 mm <br />0.2 m <br /> (65 cm650 mm <br />0.65 m <br />) +
pubescent +  and glabrous +
smooth +  and scabridulous +
inrolled +  and flat +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br />) +
spikelike +
with hairs +  and glabrous +
reddish-brown +
0.11 cm1.1 mm <br />0.0011 m <br /> (0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br />) +
triangular +  and dome--shaped +
sometimes longer +
membranous +
Longtongue muhly +
geniculate +
60 cm600 mm <br />0.6 m <br /> (130 cm1,300 mm <br />1.3 m <br />) +
Ariz. +, N.Mex. +, Nev. +  and Tex. +
not waisted +
capillary +
pistillate +  and staminate +
bisexual +  and fertile +
round +  and compressed +
reduced +
usually longer +
subtending +
scabridulous +
acute +  and acuminate +
subequal +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
uncinate +
paniculate +  and racemose +
hollow +  and solid +
scabridulous +
not absent +
tan +  and purplish +
scabridulous +  and smooth +
oblongelliptic +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.29 cm2.9 mm <br />0.0029 m <br />) +
acuminate +  and obtuse +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br />) +
membranous +  and firm +
inconspicuous +
concealed +  and prominent +
2 +  and 1 +
smooth +  and scabridulous +
acute +  and oblongelliptic +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
greenish-tan +  and purplish +
15cm +  and 55cm +
cleistogamous +
spikelike +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br />) +
smooth +  and scabridulous +
0.01 cm0.1 mm <br />1.0e-4 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
dry +  and fleshy +
diverging;ascending +
3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br /> (13 cm130 mm <br />0.13 m <br />) +
spikelike +
shorter or longer +
scabridulous +  and smooth +
30 +  and 60 +
compressed +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
1 +  and 3 +
compound +  and simple +
2 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
Gramineae +
Muhlenbergia longiligula +
Muhlenbergia +
species +
membranous +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.02 cm0.2 mm <br />2.0e-4 m <br />) +
shorter than to longer than the florets +
7 (?) +  and 13 (?) +
plant +  and cespitose +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +
dioecious +, monoecious +  and synoecious +