Festuca pulchella

HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped loosely. Rhizomes short. Basal innovations extravaginal. Culms 25–55 cm long. Leaf-sheaths tubular for much of their length; with 0.5–0.75 of their length closed; glabrous on surface. Ligule absent. Leaf-blades flat, or conduplicate; 2–5 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation with sclerenchyma strands below veins and above all veins; subepidermal sclerenchyma attached to veins above and below (primary veins only).

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.

Panicle open; ovate; bearing few spikelets. Primary panicle branches spreading. Panicle branches flexuous.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 7–8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; hyaline; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 4.6–4.9 mm long; 0.8–0.9 length of adjacent fertile lemma; hyaline; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex acuminate.

FLORETS Fertile lemma oblong; 5.8–6 mm long; chartaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface scabrous. Lemma apex acute; muticous. Palea 2 -veined. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Lodicules 2. Anthers 3. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; obovoid. Hilum linear. Disseminule comprising a caryopsis.

DISTRIBUTION Europe: central, southwestern, and southeastern.

NOTES Poeae. Fl Eur 1995.

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