37. Elymus altissimus (Keng) Á. Löve ex B. Rong Lu, Nordic J. Bot. 15: 24. 1995.
高株披碱草 gao zhu pi jian cao
Roegneria altissima Keng, Acta Univ. Nankin. Sci. Nat. 1963(1): 53. 1963.
Culms tufted, erect, slightly geniculate, 70–150 cm, rigid, 5–7-noded. Leaf blade glaucous green, 7–25(–40) × 0.6–1 cm, abaxial surface glabrous, adaxial surface laxly puberulent, margin scabrous. Spike erect or slightly curved, 15–18 cm. Spikelets 1 per node, ca. 11 mm, with 1–3 florets. Glumes greenish or slightly purplish, oblong, 5–6 mm, thick, 5–7-veined or proximal glume 3-veined, apex acuminate. Lemma yellowish green or slightly purplish, oblong-lanceolate, pubescent only at base and at margin; first lemma ca. 10 mm; awn slightly reflexed, robust, 10–20 mm. Palea slightly shorter than lemma, apex emarginate or subrounded. Fl. and fr. Jun–Sep. 2n = 28*.
* Forests, meadows; 1700–3400 m. Qinghai, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Yunnan.
Löve (Feddes Repert. 95: 448. 1984) did not previously validly publish the combination Elymus altissimus; see the note following the genus description above.