Agrostis stolonifera L., Sp. Pl. 1: 62. 1753

Sylvester, Steven P., Cuta-Alarcon, Lia E., Bravo-Pedraza, William J. & Soreng, Robert J., 2020, Agrostis and Podagrostis (Agrostidinae, Poaceae) from paramos of Boyaca, Colombia: synoptic taxonomy including a key to Colombian species, PhytoKeys 151, pp. 107-160 : 107

Agrostis stolonifera L., Sp. Pl. 1: 62. 1753 Fig. 9

Type.

[Habitat in Europa], Herb. A. van Royen s.n. (lectotype, designated by Widén 1971: 77: L (L0059234 [image!])).

Many heterotypic synonyms.

Description.

Perennial herbs, generally creeping, usually extensively stoloniferous with long stolons to 200 cm long, less often with short stolons, rhizomes usually absent. Tillers extravaginal, with cataphylls present. Culms 15-100 cm tall, erect or decumbent at their base, delicate to fairly firm, nodes usually held within sheaths with 0(-3) exerted at flowering, usually smooth to rarely scaberulous. Leaves mainly cauline, glabrous, scaberulous; ligules 1-6.5(-8) mm long, of basal leaves and tillers 1-3 mm long, of upper culm 2-6.5(-8) mm long, rounded to truncate, not or slightly to moderately decurrent with the sheath, abaxial surface scaberulous; blades 2-26 cm long, 1-8 mm wide, flat or sometimes folded, soft and lax, surfaces and margins scaberulous to scabrous, apices acute. Panicles 2-20(-32) cm long, 1-16 cm wide, open and lax or contracted after flowering, ovoid to pyramidal, slightly to usually greatly exerted from the basal foliage, lateral branches naked in the lower 1/3-1/4 or with spikelets present to the base, long, ascending, spreading, to somewhat divergent and not held close to the central inflorescence axis at or before flowering, held close to the central rachis at maturity, central axis and panicle branches scabrous or very rarely smooth; pedicels 0.5-2.5 mm long, usually shorter than their spikelets, dilated or not at their apex, scabrous. Spikelets (not including awn, if present) 1.8-3 mm long; glumes subequal or unequal, the lower slightly longer than the upper by up to c. 0.5 mm, 1-veined, lower glume keel usually scabrous in the distal half, upper glume often smooth throughout, apices acute; floret usually 2/3-3/4 the length of the glumes; calluses with 2 sparse lateral tufts of short hairs; lemmas 1.2-2.2(-2.5) mm long, (3-) 5-veined, glabrous or rarely pubescent at the base with hairs 0.1-0.2 mm long, smooth, apex obtuse or truncate, erose, muticous or rarely with an awn 0.5-3 mm long, usually inserted above the middle of the dorsal keel, exerted or not from the glumes, straight, flexuose or geniculate, twisted or not, weak and falling easily; paleas 0.7-1.3(-1.6) mm long, (2/5-) ½-¾ the length of the lemma; rachilla absent; anthers 0.9-1.6 mm long.

Distribution and ecology.

Widespread and cosmopolitan or Eurasian origin, introduced to South America from Europe. While no specimens of A. stolonifera were verified from Departamento Boyacá at US or encountered during extensive fieldwork in the region, the species is cited for Boyacá in the checklist ( Giraldo-Cañas et al. 2016) and specimens were found at US from the neighboring Departamento Cundinamarca in the Cordillera Oriental meaning it likely that the species occurs in Boyacá.

Other specimens examined.

Colombia. Cundinamarca: Sabana de Bogota, 2600 m alt., 29 Dec. 1938, J. Cuatrecasas 452 (US1772826); Tunjuelo, granja experimental "La Picota", [4.5331N, 74.1117W], 2600 m alt., 3 Feb. 1933, H. García-Barriga 6 (US2115003).

Figures

Figure 9. Agrostis stolonifera A whole plant B inflorescence, close-up C spikelet, close-up, lateral view. Image A Cuatrecasas 452 (US 1772826) B Garcia-Barriga 6 (US 2115003).