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SCHIZACHYRIUM Nees. Bluestem
Plants hermaphroditic, caespitose or rhizomatous or stoloniferous, annual or perennial (our species). Culms
erect or ascending or decumbent; internodes solid or hollow, glabrous or glaucous or hairy, terete; nodes
glabrous or glaucous. Leaves basal and cauline, not distinctly distichous; sheaths terete or with compressed
keels, margins open; auricles absent; ligules a ciliate membrane; blades flat or folded, linear, lax, apex
acuminate. Spicate racemes terminal and axillary (several inflorescences per culm), sheaths subtending
inflorescences not infated or spathe-like (rarely resembling a spathe); not aromatic; rachis glabrous or
pubescent or hirsute; pedicels not longtudinally grooved, glabrous or hairy, semiterete. Spikelets paired
at inflorescence nodes (at apex ternate), similar or dissimilar in size and shape, disarticulation below
the glumes, dorsiventrally compressed; sessile (or short pediceled) spikelets fertile, pedicellate
(or long pediceled) spikelets sterile or staminate or neuter and reduced. Pedicellate spikelets
usually reduced, awned or awnless. Sessile spikelets perfect; first glumes 2-keeled, not with a
gland-like depressions or pits; abaxial surface convex, smooth, indurate, glabrous or hairy,
awnless; second glumes length equal to first glumes; lower florets sterile; lemmas hyaline,
entire (acute), awnless; paleas absent; upper florets fertile; lemmas hyaline, 1/4 to 7/8 bifid,
awned from between the teeth of lemma; paleas usually absent or rarely present, hyaline when present.
Stamens 1 or 2 or 3; anthers golden or purple. Caryopses dorsiventrally compressed, linear. Base chromosome
number x=10.
A genus of about 60 species. This genus occurs in temperate, subtropical or tropical habitats on mesic
toxeric sites. These are important livestock forages and ecological dominats.
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