Annual Wheatgrass

Culms geniculate at base, 10–30 cm tall, 3- or 4-noded, puberulent below spike. Leaf sheath inflated on upper leaves, glabrous or puberulent at base; ligule 0.5–1 mm, membranous, apex truncate; leaf blade thin, flat, 1.5–8 × 0.2–0.3 cm, both surfaces scabrous or sparsely puberulent. Spike ellipsoid-ovoid or subglobose, contracted, dense, 1–1.7(–2) × 0.6–1.6 cm. Spikelets closely imbricate, green, 6–10 mm, with 3–6 florets, glabrous. Glumes lanceolate, 4–6 mm, thickly keeled, glabrous, apex subulate. Lemma scabrous but first lemma ± puberulent, 5–6 mm, apex acuminate or with short awn 1–1.5 mm; callus ca. 0.4 mm. Palea shorter than lemma, apex 2-dentate. Fl. and fr. Apr–May.

Nei Mongol, Xinjiang [Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan; Europe].

Wooded and grassy steppes, dry slopes, semideserts, sands, pebbles, alkaline and saline soils; 800–1400 m.

Agropyron triticeum Gaertner, Novi Comment. Acad. Sci. Imp. Petrop. 14: 539. 1770; A. prostratum (Pallas) P. Beauvois; Eremopyrum prostratum (Pallas) P. Candargy; Secale prostra-tum Pallas; Triticum prostratum (Pallas) Linnaeus f.