Bromus madritensis

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Bromus madritensis
Bromus-rubens-20080327.JPG
Bromus madritensis subsp. rubens
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus: Bromus
Species:
B. madritensis
Binomial name
Bromus madritensis
L.
Synonyms [1]
  • Anisantha madritensis(L.) Nevski
  • Anisantha matritensis(L.) Nevski
  • Bromus matritensisL.

Bromus madritensis is a species of brome grass known by the common name compact brome. The specific epithet madritensis refers to Madrid, Spain. It has a diploid number of 28.

Contents

There are two subspecies:

Description

Reddish subspecies rubens habit Bromus madritensis rubens in desert.jpg
Reddish subspecies rubens habit

Bromus madritensis is an winter annual grass, growing solitary or tufted, with erect or ascending culms growing 20–70 cm (7.9–27.6 in) high. The leaf sheaths are downy or slightly hairy. The grass lacks auricles and the glabrous ligules are 1.5–2 mm (0.059–0.079 in) long. Its flat leaf blades are either glabrous or slightly hairy, and measure 4–20 cm (1.6–7.9 in) long and 1–5 mm (0.039–0.197 in) wide. The erect and ellipsoid panicles are 3–12 cm (1.2–4.7 in) long and 2–6 cm (0.79–2.36 in) wide, with short branches that ascend and slightly spread. The branches never droop and bear one or two spikelets each. The spikelets are 4–6 cm (1.6–2.4 in) long, longer than the panicle branches, and bear seven to eleven florets. The spikelets vary in color from green to distinctly purplish-red. The lightly hairy glumes taper at their ends and have translucent margins. The lower glumes are one-nerved and 5–10 mm (0.20–0.39 in) long, and the upper glumes are three-nerved and 10–15 mm (0.39–0.59 in) long. The glabrous and slightly rough lemmas are 1.5–2 cm (0.59–0.79 in) long. The lemmas are hairier towards their edges and have five to seven veins. The awns are about the same length, 1.2–2.3 cm (0.47–0.91 in) long, and curve slightly. The anthers are 0.5–1 mm (0.020–0.039 in) long. The caryopses are as long as 11 mm (0.43 in). [2] [3]

The grass emerges in early winter and remains dormant until spring when heavy rainfall and higher temperatures stimulate growth. Plants flower from this period typically until May when water stress inhibits the grass. Populations grow during periods of heavy rainfall and populations can be wiped out during extended periods of drought. [4]

The grass alters soil conditions and the competition brought about by the grass both negatively affect native plant populations, and the highly flammable nature of the grass produces wildfires in North American communities where fire was previously rare. Dry florets of the weed entangle themselves in animal hair and can tear at the digestive tracts of foraging livestock. [4]

Habitat and distribution

Bromus madritensis is native to southern and western Europe but has been introduced and naturalized nearly worldwide. In North America it is found primarily in the western United States, in Oregon, California, and Arizona. The grass was brought to North America in 1848 and was naturalized by the 1890s.

In its native range the grass grows in cultivated fields and steppes, and in North America it grows in waste areas, road verges, and disturbed areas, in both ranges primarily on dry stony or sandy soil. [3] In California, the weedy grass occurs in areas disturbed by wildfires. It grows from sea level to elevations of 1,300 m (4,300 ft). [4]

Related Research Articles

<i>Bromus</i> Genus of grasses

Bromus is a large genus of grasses, classified in its own tribe Bromeae. They are commonly known as bromes, brome grasses, cheat grasses or chess grasses. Estimates in the scientific literature of the number of species have ranged from 100 to 400, but plant taxonomists currently recognize around 160–170 species.

<i>Bromus arvensis</i> Species of grass

Bromus arvensis, the field brome, is a brome grass native to Europe and Asia. The specific epithet arvensis is Latin, meaning "of cultivated land".

<i>Bromus hordeaceus</i> Species of grass

Bromus hordeaceus, the soft brome, is an annual or biennial species of grass in the grass family (Poaceae). It is also known in North America as bull grass, soft cheat, and soft chess.

<i>Bromus secalinus</i> Species of grass

Bromus secalinus is a species of bromegrass known as rye brome. The specific epithet secalinus is Latin, meaning "rye-like". The fruits are hard, rounded glumes that appear superficially similar to the rye grain, which gives the brome its common and scientific name. The grass has a diploid number of 28.

<i>Bromus briziformis</i> Species of grass

Bromus briziformis is a species of brome grass known by the common name rattlesnake brome. The specific epithet briziformis comes from the resemblance of the grass to grasses of the genus Briza, particularly Briza maxima. The common name is derived from the resemblance of the spikelets to the rattles of rattlesnakes. The grass has a diploid number of 14.

<i>Bromus catharticus</i> Species of grass

Bromus catharticus is a species of brome grass known by the common names rescuegrass, grazing brome, prairie grass, and Schrader's bromegrass. The specific epithet catharticus is Latin, meaning cathartic. The common name rescuegrass refers to the ability of the grass to provide forage after harsh droughts or severe winters. The grass has a diploid number of 42.

<i>Bromus ciliatus</i> Species of grass

Bromus ciliatus is a species of brome grass known by the common name fringed brome. It is native to most of North America, including most of Canada, most of the United States except for some portions of the South, and northern Mexico. It is a plant of many habitats, including temperate coniferous forest. The specific epithet ciliatus is Latin for "ciliate", referring to the delicate hairs of the leaf blades.

<i>Bromus kalmii</i> Species of grass

Bromus kalmii, Kalm's brome, is a species of brome grass. It is a native bunchgrass in the North-central and Northeastern United States, the Great Lakes region, and eastern Canada. The specific epithet kalmii refers to its discoverer Pehr Kalm.

<i>Melica ciliata</i> Species of plant

Melica ciliata, the hairy melic or silky spike melic, is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae, native to Europe, north Africa and temperate Asia. It has been introduced to South Australia.

Hopia obtusa is a species of grass commonly known as vine mesquite. This plant was treated as Panicum obtusum until recently when more molecular and genetic material revealed new information about it. Hopia obtusa is now placed in the monotypic genus Hopia.

<i>Bromus erectus</i> Species of grass

Bromus erectus, commonly known as erect brome, upright brome or meadow brome, is a dense, course, tufted perennial grass. It can grow to 120 centimetres (47 in). Like many brome grasses the plant is hairy. The specific epithet erectus is Latin, meaning "erect". The diploid number of the grass is 56.

<i>Bromus aleutensis</i> Species of flowering plant

Bromus aleutensis, commonly known as the Aleutian brome, is a perennial grass found in North America. B. aleutensis has a diploid number of 56.

<i>Bromus latiglumis</i> Species of grass

Bromus latiglumis, the earlyleaf brome, is a grass native to North America. The specific epithet latiglumis is Latin for "broad-glumed", referring to the wide glumes.

<i>Bromus nottowayanus</i> Species of grass

Bromus nottowayanus, the Nottoway Valley brome or satin brome, is a brome grass native to North America. The specific epithet nottowayanus refers to the Nottoway Valley. The grass has a diploid number of 14.

<i>Bromus japonicus</i> Species of grass

Bromus japonicus, the Japanese brome, is an annual brome grass native to Eurasia. The grass has a diploid number of 14.

<i>Bromus squarrosus</i> Species of grass

Bromus squarrosus, the rough brome, is a brome grass native to Russia and Europe. The specific epithet squarrosus is Latin, meaning "with spreading tips". The grass has a diploid number of 14.

<i>Festuca brachyphylla</i> Species of grass

Festuca brachyphylla, commonly known as alpine fescue or short-leaved fescue, is a grass native to Eurasia, North America, and the Arctic. The grass is used for erosion control and revegetation. The specific epithet brachyphylla means "short-leaved". The grass has a diploid number of 28, 42, or 44. This species was first described in 1827.

<i>Festuca saximontana</i> Species of grass

Festuca saximontana, the rocky mountain fescue or the mountain fescue, is a perennial grass native to North America. The specific epithet saximontana is Latin and means "of the Rocky Mountains". The grass has a diploid number of 42.

Bromus pacificus, the Pacific brome, is a perennial grass native to the Pacific coast of North America. Bromus pacificus has a diploid number of 28.

<i>Bromus racemosus</i> Species of grass in the genus Bromus

Bromus racemosus, the smooth brome or bald brome, is a species of flowering plant in the family Poaceae. It is native to subarctic and temperate Eurasia, and widely introduced elsewhere, including North America, Iceland, the Southern Cone of South America, the Korean Peninsula, Australia, and New Zealand. It grows in alkaline meadows and in waste places.

References

  1. ↑ "Bromus madritensis". USDA Plants Database. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  2. ↑ Merrit Lyndon Fernald (1970). R. C. Rollins (ed.). Gray's Manual of Botany (Eighth (Centennial) – Illustrated ed.). D. Van Nostrand Company. p. 103. ISBN   0-442-22250-5.
  3. 1 2 Flora of North America Editorial Committee (1993). Flora of North America: North of Mexico. Vol. 24. Oxford University Press. p. 226. ISBN   9780195310719.
  4. 1 2 3 Carla C. Bossard; John M. Randall; Marc C. Hoshovsky, eds. (2000). Invasive Plants of California's Wildlands (illustrated ed.). University of California Press. p.  74-75. ISBN   9780520225473.
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