Plant Image
Plant - summer
Mingus Mtn


Yavapai County Native & Naturalized Plants

Muhlenbergia wrightii - spike muhly

Plant Form: Grass

Family: Poaceae


   
 
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Plant - fall
Willow Lake
Sue Smith
Plant - grazed
Mahan Park
John Kava
Blades
Willow Lake
Sue Smith
Seedhead
Mahan Park
John Kava
Seedhead
Willow Lake
Sue Smith
Ligule
Willow Lake
Sue Smith
  Grass Description -   Glossary of Grass Terminology


Origin: Native    Season: Warm
Habitat Description: Grows in gravelly grasslands, on rocky slopes, woodland and forest openings and in dry meadows on granitic, sandstone, or limestone soils.
Plant Communities:Semidesert Grasslands, Pinyon Juniper Woodland, Montane Conifer Forest
Elevation: 4000 - 9000 feet


General Description

Desc: Loose clumps 1 to 2 feet wide, 1/2 to 2 feet high. Stems wiry looking when mature and dried.
Identification Notes: Tufted perennial; clumps to 2 feet wide and tall, wiry stems. Blades flat. Sheaths ridged, smooth, ligule square, membranous. Seedhead dense, narrow, often with gaps of no spikelets. Glumes awn pointed. Lemmas often awn-tipped.
Grass Type: Perennial bunchgrass  Rhizomes: N  Stolons: N
Large Dense Clump (> 2 feet): Y  Bushy (highly branched): N
Height with Seedheads: 12 to 24 inches
Seedhead Structure: Branched - contracted  Seedhead Droops: N
Flowering Period: Jul - Oct
Flower Characteristics

Number of Flowers per Spikelet: One-flowered  Spikelets One-sided: N
Awns: Less than 1/4 inch   Three Awns: N  Awns Bent: N
Flower and Seedhead Notes: Dense spikelike seedheads with appressed branches that are spikelet bearing to the base but often have gaps of no spikelets. Spikelets single flowered, dark green or lead-colored; glumes equal, abruptly narrowed to a sharp point or a very short awn.
Vegetative Charcteristics

Blade Hairy: Y    Blade with White Margins: N    Blade Cross section: Flat or involute
Blade Notes: Blades up to 5 inches long, folded or rolled inward at the edges, smooth or slightly hairy.
Sheath Hairy: Y    Tuft of Hairs at top of Sheath or Collar: N    Ligules: Membranous
Auricles (Ear-like lobes at collar area: N

Forage Value: Good.


  Arizona Cooperative Extension
Yavapai County
840 Rodeo Dr #C
Prescott, AZ 86305
(928) 445-6590
Version 8.0  
http://cales.arizona.edu/yavapaiplants/SpeciesDetailGrass.php  
Last Updated: Dec 13, 2022
Content Questions/Comments: Email Matt Halldorson  
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