Leptochloa fascicularis (Lam.)
Bearded Spangletop

Habit: 		Annual, somewhat succulent.
Culms: 		Erect to spreading or prostrate, tufted, somewhat flattened, freely branching,
		30-100 cm. tall.
Blades: 	Up to 50 cm. long, 3-5 mm. wide, flat, soon involute, the midrib and veins on
		the upper surface white and prominent, long-attenuate, rough, the upper sheathing
		the base of the panicle.
Sheaths: 	Longer than the internodes, loose, rough toward the summit.
Ligule: 	Membranous, 3-4 mm. long.
Inflorescence: 	Panicle as long as 60 cm., made up of as many as 40 racemelike branches
		8-12 cm. long, bearing appressed, overlapping spikelets to the base, pedicels about 1 mm. long.
Spikelets: 	6-12-flowered, 8-10 mm. long, flattened, the uppermost floret usually
		imperfect or rudimentary, rachilla disarticulating above the glumes and between the florets.
Glumes: 	1-nerved, more or less acute, scabrous on the keel, somewhat scarious,
		first 2-2.5 mm. long, the second 3-3.5 mm. long, usually shorter than the spikelets.
Lemmas: 	Exclusive of the awns 3-3.5 mm. long, acutish, narrow, 3-nerved, entire
		or the midnerve produced into an awn about 1 mm. long from between a bifid
		apex made by 2 small lateral teeth, the 3 nerves villous on the lower half,
		rachilla-joint about 1 mm. long, hairy at the apex.
Palea: 		Shorter than the lemma.
Habitat: 	Brackish meadows, or in ditches, alkali flats or shallow water.  August-September.
Kansas Range:	Scattered in east three fourths.
Remarks: 	Quite variable.