曲枝早熟禾 qu zhi zao shu he

Poa levipes Keng ex L. Liu; P. nigropurpurea C. Ling.

Perennials, loosely to moderately densely tufted, usually not rhizomatous, infrequently with short delicate rhizomes; shoots extravaginal and pseudointravaginal. Culms erect or decumbent, often geniculate, 5–30(–40) cm tall, 0.5–1 mm in diam., round, smooth, nodes 2 or 3, none or 1(–2) exserted, nodes distinctly constricted and translucent, basal sheaths soon withering. Leaf sheaths smooth or finely scabrid, glabrous, loose, 2–10 cm, 1.25–5 × as long as blade, uppermost closed for 1/3–2/3 of length; blade flat, thin, 2–9 cm × 1.5–2.5 mm, surfaces and margins nearly smooth to scabrid, apex slender prow-tipped, uppermost erect or slightly divergent, 1–4.5 cm, of tillers 2–8 cm; ligule 1.5–4.3(–6) mm, abaxially smooth or sparsely scabrid, apex acute, sometimes blunt, collars smooth, glabrous. Panicle open, lax, exserted, 3–10 × 2–5 cm, longest internodes 1–3 cm; branches spreading to reflexed, flexuous, often arched upward, sometimes looping back, rounded, 1 or 2 per node, smooth or slightly scabrid distally on pedicels, longest 2–4 cm, with 2–6 spikelets in distal 1/2; flowers female or perfect. Spikelets elliptic, (4–)4.3–5.5(–5.8) mm, florets (1 or)2 or 3(or 4); vivipary absent; rachilla internodes 0.5–3 mm, smooth, bumpy, glabrous or rarely pilulose; glumes unequal to subequal, narrow, surfaces minutely punctate with purple papillae, keels weak, keels and veins sometimes sparsely scabrid distally, lower glume 2.5–3.5(–4) mm, 1-veined, often blunt, upper glume 3–3.5(–4.9) mm, 3-veined; lemmas very thinly papery, 3.2–4.8(–5) mm, intermediate veins faint to moderately prominent, keel and marginal veins proximally villous, area between veins proximally scabrid or pilulose, distally scabrid; callus glabrous or webbed, hairs sparse; palea smooth or scabrid, glabrous between keels, keels finely scabrid for over 3/4 of length. Anthers 2–3.5 mm or vestigial. Fl. and fr. Jun–Aug.

Alpine to subalpine grassy places on riversides, slopes, thickets; (3200–)3600–5200 m. ?Qinghai, W Sichuan, Xizang, NW Yunnan [Bhutan, N India, Kashmir, Nepal, Pakistan].

Poa pagophila is difficult to separate from P. lipskyi and P. qinghaiensis. It has shorter spikelets, glumes that are more evidently papillate-punctate, and less well-developed, dense basal tufts of leaves. Although it was reported in Fl. Qinghai. (4: 46. 1999), we have seen no authentic material from Qinghai. When P. pagophila was first described by Bor (Kew Bull. [4] 1949: 239. 1949), the name was not validly published.