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LEYMUS Hochst. Wildrye
Plant hermaphroditic, caespitose or rhizomatous, perennial. Culms erect or ascending, glabrous or scabrous or hairy, internodes
hollow, terete. Leaves basal and cauline, not distinctly distichous; sheaths terete, margins open; auricles present or absent;
ligules membranous; blades flat or involute, linear, stiff or lax. Spikes (rarely spicate racemes), bilateral, or not
distinctly bilateral, rachis persistent, pedicels short when present. Spikelets paired or in clusters to five (rarely
solitary) at inflorescence nodes, ascending or appressed, laterally compressed, disarticulation above the glumes, awned, sessile
or subsessile (short pedicellate); florets 3-10, reduced floret at apex , callus hairy or glabrous; rachilla not extended
beyond upper floret; glumes 2, 1-3 veined, opposite or displaced relative to floret position, unequal or equal,
subulate or not subulate, shorter than first floret or longer than first florets, awned or awnless; lemmas 5-7-veined,
coriaceous, glabrous or hairy, apex entire (acute), awned or mucronate; awn apical when present, straight; paleas 2-veined,
awnless, glabrous or scabrous or hairy. Stamens 3; anthers yellow. Caryopses adnate to lemma and/or palea, dorsiventrally
compressed. Base chromosome number x=7.
A genus of about 30 species that occur in the more arid parts of central Asia and North America. The
species occurs in littoral or saline habitats including sand dunes.
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