''Achnatherum lettermanii'' is a species of

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in law ...

known by the common name Letterman's needlegrass. The updated and accepted name is ''Stipa lettermanii''. It is native to the western United States from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

, where it is a resident of several types of habitat. ''Achnatherum lettermanii'' is a tufting perennial

bunchgrass Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perenni ...

which forms large clumps of erect stems up to about 80 centimeters tall. The leaves are short and slightly curly. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed ...

is up to about 19 centimeters long and has open branches with few spikelets. Each spikelet is less than a centimeter long but has an

awn AWN may stand for: * Awn Access to Justice Network in Gaza Strip, Legal Aid Network operate in Gaza Strip, Palestine * Animation World Network, an online organization for animators * Avant Window Navigator, a dock-like bar that tracks open wind ...

which can be up to about 2.5 centimeters in length. The awn has two kinks.

References

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment - ''Achnatherum lettermanii''USDA Plants ProfileGrass Manual Treatment''Achnatherum lettermanii'' - Photo gallery
lettermanii Bunchgrasses of North America Native grasses of California Grasses of the United States Flora of the Great Basin Flora of Idaho Flora of Nevada Flora of New Mexico Flora of Oregon Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the Transverse Ranges {{Pooideae-stub