''Bouteloua hirsuta'', commonly known as hairy grama, is a
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
short
prairie
Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
grass that is native throughout much of
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, including the
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
and
Canadian Prairies
The Canadian Prairies (usually referred to as simply the Prairies in Canada) is a region in Western Canada. It includes the Canadian portion of the Great Plains and the Prairie Provinces, namely Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. These provin ...
region, as well as
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
and
Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
.
Description
''B. hirsuta'' is a warm-season grass growing 10–20 in (0.2-0.5 m tall, and grows well on mountainous plateaus, rocky slopes, and sandy plains. The leaf blade is flat or slightly rolled, narrow, mostly basal, with hairy margins. The leaf sheath is rounded, smooth, and shorter than internodes. The seedhead is one to four spikes, purplish before maturity, about 1 in (2.5 cm) long; the rachis extends beyond spikelets. It is used primarily for grazing.
Distribution
Hairy grama prefers rocky slopes, as well as dry yet sandy areas between .
References
External links
*
*
*
* Beetle, A. A. 1970. Recommended plant names. Univ. Wyoming Agr. Exp. Sta. Res. J. 31.
* Cronquist, A. et al. 1972–. Intermountain flora.
* Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
* FNA Editorial Committee. 1993–. Flora of North America.
* Gould, F. W. 1979. The genus Bouteloua (Poaceae). Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 66:394.
* Herrera A., Y. et al. 2004. Revisión de Bouteloua Lag. (Poaceae).
* Kartesz, J. T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland.
* Mejía-Saulés, M. T. & P. Dávila A. 1992. Gramíneas Útiles de México. Cuad. Inst. Biol. 16.
hirsuta
Grasses of North America
Warm-season grasses of North America
Grasses of Canada
Grasses of Mexico
Grasses of the United States
Native grasses of the Great Plains region
Flora of the United States
Flora of the Canadian Prairies
Flora of Western Canada
Native grasses of Nebraska
Native grasses of Oklahoma
Native grasses of Texas
Flora of Mexico
Flora of Guatemala
Flora of the Chihuahuan Desert
Flora of the Mexican Plateau
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Chloridoideae-stub