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 Plant - summer Fair Oaks RdSue Smith |  Plant - summer Fair Oaks RdSue Smith |  Blades Fair Oaks RdSue Smith |  Tufts of hair at top of sheath Fair Oaks RdSue Smith |  Seedhead Rimrock Verde ValleyJohn Kava |  Spikelets Fair Oaks RdSue Smith |
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Origin: Native Season: Warm
Habitat Description: Found on sandy soils of dry plains, slopes, and washes, rocky slopes and limestone ridges, in desert scrub, pinyon-juniper woodlands, pine forests and desert grasslands.
Plant Communities:Desert Scrub, Interior Chaparral, Semidesert Grasslands, Pinyon Juniper Woodland, Montane Conifer Forest
Elevation: 200 - 7000 feet
Similar Species: Sporabolus contractus, S. flexuosus
Desc:
Erect, tufted perennial grass with round, unbranched stem, 2 to 4 feet tall, depending upon precipitation. Main characteristic is the conspicuous tuft of long white hairs at the leaf collar.
Identification Notes: Tufted erect perennial, stems sometimes bent at base. Collar and ligule hairy. Sheath often hairy on the margins. Seedhead partially included in sheath, initially contracted, open at maturity, pyramidal, densely flowered. Spikelets one flowered, unawned.
Grass Type: Perennial bunchgrass Rhizomes: N Stolons: N
Large Dense Clump (> 2 feet): N Bushy (highly branched): N
Height with Seedheads: Greater than 36 inches
Seedhead Structure: Branched - open and spreading Seedhead Droops: N
Flowering Period: Jun - Oct
Number of Flowers per Spikelet: One-flowered Spikelets One-sided: N
Awns: Absent Three Awns: N Awns Bent: N
Flower and Seedhead Notes: Seedhead 6 to 20 inches long and 1/2 to 4-1/2 inches wide, partially or totally enclosed on one side by the upper sheath. Upper branches are spikelet bearing to the bases.
Blade Hairy:
N
Blade with White Margins:
N
Blade Cross section:
Flat or folded
Blade Notes:
Blades often at near right angle to stem. 3 to 10 inches long, 1/4 inch wide, flat or folded. May be rolled inward when dry.
Sheath Hairy:
Y
Tuft of Hairs at top of Sheath or Collar:
Y
Ligules:
Membranous and hairy
Auricles (Ear-like lobes at collar area:
N
Forage Value:
Fair to good for livestock and poor for wildlife while actively growing, declines rapidly with maturity.
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