Paspalum distichum L.
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Authority
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.
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Family
Poaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Stoloniferous; culms 2–5 dm, ascending from a creeping base with conspicuous sheaths; lf-blades relatively short, 2–8 cm × 2–5 mm, ciliate at base; racemes 2, one sessile, the other short-stalked, ascending and often incurved, 2–5 cm, the rachis 1–1.5 mm wide; spikelets solitary, 2.6–3 mm, half as wide, plump, planoconvex, ovate; first glume often developed, triangular, to 1 mm; second glume 5-veined, minutely pubescent, this and the sterile lemma somewhat leathery; 2n=40, 48, 60. Swamps, wet ground, and waste places, often in coastal salt-marshes; mainly in subtropical and warm-temperate regions throughout the world, n. in our range to Ky. and se. Va., and adventive to N.Y. There is some controversy as to whether the name P. distichum should apply to our sp. or to the closely related, more tropical plant usually called P. vaginatum Sw.; in the latter case, our plants take the name P. paspalodes (Michx.) Scribn.
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Common Names
knotgrass