Puccinellia Parl.
Poaceae, grass family.
Plants caespitose, or not caespitose; less than 15 cm high, or more than 15 cm high; 1–17–40 cm high. Ground-level or under-ground stems horizontal, or not developed horizontally or vertically underground; stoloniferous. Aerial stems erect, or decumbent, or prostrate; circular or oval in cross-section; glabrous. Leaves distributed along the stems, or mostly basal; alternate; not distinctly distichous; marcescent. Prophylls 4–12–30 mm long; with smooth veins, or with scabrous veins; with pronounced keels, or lacking pronounced keels. Petioles absent. Sheaths with the margins fused only in the lower part, or with the margins not fused; glabrous; collars collars present. Ligules present; 0.3–1.7–4 mm long; membranous; glabrous, or hairy (rarely); lanceolate, or ovate-oblong; apices acute, or obtuse; entire, or erose, or lacerate. Blades 10–120–160 mm long; 0.2–1–4 mm wide; appressed to the stem, or spreading from the vertical, or reflexed; rolled in bud (usually), or folded in bud (Puccinellia vahliana); linear; without auricles; flat, or folded, or involute; with parallel veins; midvein conspicuously larger than the lateral veins, or midvein similar in size to other veins in the leaf; bulliform cells in distinct rows on either side of the midvein (Puccinellia vahliana), or without bulliform cells in a distinct row on either side of the midvein (usually); adaxial surface glabrous, or scabrous. Blades abaxial surface glabrous, or scabrous.
Flowering culm nodes rooting at the lower nodes, or not rooting at the lower nodes; not exposed, or becoming exposed; number visible 0–2. Flag leaf sheaths not inflated. Inflorescences paniculate; inflorescence diffuse; inflorescence linear, or oblong, or lanceolate, or ovate; inflorescence 0.35–4.5–13 cm long; inflorescence 2–20–130 mm wide; inflorescence main axis glabrous, or scabrous. Number of inflorescence branches at lowest node 1–7. Inflorescence primary branches 1–20–70 mm long; glabrous, or scabrous; with appressed secondary branches, or with spreading secondary branches. Spikelets pedicellate; disarticulating above the glumes; laterally compressed; lanceolate; 3–6–9.5 mm long; 0.7–2.2–4.5 mm wide. Florets per spikelet 2–7. First glume 0.4–0.65–1.1 × the length of the second glume; 0.1–0.27–0.7 × spikelet length; 0.7–1.7–3.5 mm long; oblong, or lanceolate, or ovate; glabrous; margins glabrous, or ciliate; veins 1–3; apex acuminate, or acute, or obtuse. Second glume 0.4 × as long as the spikelet or less, or 0.4–0.9 × as long as the spikelet (in Puccinellia vahliana); shorter than the lowest floret, or almost as long as, or longer than, the lowest floret; 1.3–2.3–3.9 mm long; oblong, or lanceolate, or ovate, or elliptic, or oblanceolate; glabrous; veins 3–5. Rachilla internode 0.1–0.9–1.5 mm long; glabrous, or hairy. Rachilla pronounced between the florets, or not pronounced between the florets; terminating in a vestigial floret, or extending beyond the uppermost floret. Callus differentiated, or not differentiated; hairs 0–0.17–0.5 mm long; hairs shorter than the floret. Lemma 2–3.3–5.2 mm long; oblong, or ovate, or lanceolate, or elliptic, or obovate; keeled, or rounded on the back; surface shiny, or dull; surface glabrous, or sparsely scabrous, or hairy; surface with trichomes on veins only, or on and between the veins (when present); veins 3–7 (the midvein reaching to the apex, the other veins not reaching the apex). Lemma apex acute, or rounded, or truncate; entire, or erose, or lacerate; awnless. Palea well developed; 2–3–4.8 mm long; with glabrous veins, or with scabrous veins, or with hairy veins. Perianth reduced to lodicules. Stamens 3. Anthers 0.6–1.3–2.5 mm long. Carpels syncarpous; 3. Gynoecia superior. Styles 2. Ovules 1. Fruit a caryopsis; indehiscent; 1–1.6–2.6 mm long; sessile; dry. Seeds 1.
Chromosome information. 2n = 14, 21, 28, 42, 56.
Notes. Restricted generic description combining data for the taxa occurring in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, using INTKEY.
Cite this publication as: ‘S.G. Aiken, M.J. Dallwitz, L.L.Consaul, R.L. Boles, R. Elven and M.E. LeBlanc. 2001 onwards. Flora of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Volume 1. Pteridophytes and Monocotyledons: Descriptions, Illustrations, Identification, and Information Retrieval. Version: 16th March 2001. http://www.mun.ca/biology/delta/arcticf/’. Dallwitz (1980), Dallwitz, Paine and Zurcher (1993, 1995, 2000), and Aiken, Dallwitz et al. (1999) should also be cited (see References).