RED LOVEGRASS
File Size: 71 KB
 
Eragrostis secundiflora  Torr.  subsp. oxylepis  (Torr. ) S.D. Koch
Russell County, Kansas
Perennial
Height: 6 to 30 inches tall
Family: Poaceae - Grass Family
Flowering Period:   August, September
Culms: Mostly erect, sometimes bent below, simple or branching, glabrous.
Blades: Rolled inward near tip, 2 to 12 inches long, less than 1/6 inch wide, nearly glabrous but often long-hairy on upper surface near base; tips long, narrow.
Sheaths: Shorter or longer than internodes, nearly glabrous, tuft of long hairs at throat.
Ligules: Rings of very short hairs.
Inflorescences: Panicles, densely flowered, mostly 2 to 6 inches long, often reddish brown; main branches ascending, secondary branches pressed against axis, bearing irregularly arranged clusters of spikelets.
Spikelets: Numerous, short-stalked, 5-29 flowered, strongly flattened, 1/4 - 1/2 inch long, less than 1/6 inch wide, reddish; awns absent; glumes nearly equal, tips pointed; lemmas closely overlapping, prominent green nerves, tips pointed and spreading out.
Habitat: Dry pastures, prairies, and waste ground, in sandy soils.
Distribution: Occurs in the west three quarters of Kansas.
Uses: The Paiute used red lovegrass seeds as food.
Comments: Tufted.

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