Muhlenbergia polycaulis

Scribn.
Common names: Cliff muhly
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 25. Treatment on page 167.

Plants perennial; loosely cespitose, sometimes shortly rhizomatous. Culms 15-40 (50) cm tall, 0.8-1.5 mm thick, erect or decumbent; internodes glabrous or strigulose for most of their length, including below the nodes. Sheaths usually shorter than the internodes, smooth or scabridulous, without necrotic spots, not becoming spirally coiled when old; ligules 0.5-2.5 mm, membranous, obtuse to acute, without lateral lobes; blades 3-10 mm long, 0.5-2 mm wide, flat or involute (occasionally folded), smooth or scabridulous abaxially, hirsute or scabridulous adaxially, without necrotic spots. Panicles 2-12 cm long, 0.3-1.8 cm wide, contracted, interrupted below; primary branches 0.5-4 cm, appressed or diverging up to 30° from the rachises, spikelet-bearing to the base; pedicels 0.1-1.5 mm, scabrous. Spikelets 2.5-4 mm, plump near the middle. Glumes subequal, (1) 1.5-2.6 mm, exceeded by the florets, 1-veined, acute or acuminate, unawned or awned, awns to 1.4 mm; lemmas 2-3.5 mm, elliptic, widest near the middle, appressed-pubescent on the lower 1/2 - 2/3 of the midveins and margins, hairs to 0.5 mm, apices scabridulous, acuminate, awned, awns 10-20 (25) mm, flexuous; paleas 2-3.5 mm, elliptic, intercostal region appressed-pubescent on the basal 1/2, apices acuminate; anthers 1.5-2 mm, orange. Caryopses 1.5-2 mm, fusiform, brownish. 2n = 20, 40.

Discussion

Muhlenbergia polycaulis grows in open vegetation on steep rocky slopes, canyon walls, cliffs, table rocks, and volcanic rock outcrops, at elevations of 1200-2400 m. Its range extends from the southwestern United States to central Mexico. It differs from M. glauca, with which it may be confused, in its longer lemma awns, shorter rhizomes, and loosely tufted habit.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"decumbent" is not a number.

... more about "Muhlenbergia polycaulis"
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
scabridulous +
acuminate +
Paul M. Peterson +
Scribn. +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
25 cm250 mm <br />0.25 m <br /> (?) +
flexuous +
multiple +, , +  and single +
curled +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
not fused +
intravaginal +, extravaginal +, branching +  and basal +
swelling +
membranous +
not pseudopetiolate +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
scabridulous +  and smooth +
involute +  and flat +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
spikelike +
with hairs +  and glabrous +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
triangular +  and dome--shaped +
sometimes longer +
membranous +
Cliff muhly +
15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br /> (40 cm400 mm <br />0.4 m <br />) +
decumbent +  and erect +
geniculate +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (300 cm3,000 mm <br />3 m <br />) +
0.08 cm0.8 mm <br />8.0e-4 m <br /> (0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br />) +
Utah +, Ariz. +, N.Mex. +  and Tex. +
not waisted +
capillary +
pistillate +  and staminate +
bisexual +  and fertile +
round +  and compressed +
reduced +
shorter or longer +
subtending +
acuminate +  and acute +
subequal +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.26 cm2.6 mm <br />0.0026 m <br />) +
uncinate +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br />) +
paniculate +  and racemose +
appressed-pubescent +
hollow +  and solid +
strigulose +  and glabrous +
not absent +
appressed-pubescent +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
obtuse +  and acute +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
membranous +
inconspicuous +
concealed +  and prominent +
2 +  and 1 +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
2cm +  and 12cm +
cleistogamous +
spikelike +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (1.8 cm18 mm <br />0.018 m <br />) +
0.01 cm0.1 mm <br />1.0e-4 m <br /> (0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br />) +
dry +  and fleshy +
diverging;appressed +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br />) +
spikelike +
scabridulous +  and smooth +
1 +  and 60 +
compressed +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
1 +  and 3 +
compound +  and simple +
2 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
Gramineae +
Muhlenbergia polycaulis +
Muhlenbergia +
species +
membranous +
shorter than to longer than the florets +
7 (?) +  and 13 (?) +
plant +  and cespitose +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +
dioecious +, monoecious +  and synoecious +