''Bromus erectus'', commonly known as erect brome, upright brome or meadow brome, is a dense, course, tufted perennial grass. It can grow to . Like many

brome grass ''Bromus'' is a large genus of grasses, classified in its own tribe Bromeae. They are commonly known as bromes, brome grasses, cheat grasses or chess grasses. Estimates in the scientific literature of the number of species have ranged from 100 ...

es the plant is hairy. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''erectus'' is Latin, meaning "erect". The

diploid number Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Sets of chromosomes refer to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, respecti ...

of the grass is 56.

Description

''Bromus erectus'' is a perennial, tufted grass with basal tufts of cespitose leaves that is nonrhizomatous. The culms grow between in height. The internodes are typically glabrous. The flattened cauline leaves have pubescent or glabrous sheaths. The leaf blades are long and wide. The grass lacks auricles and the

ligule A ligule (from "strap", variant of ''lingula'', from ''lingua'' "tongue") is a thin outgrowth at the junction of leaf and leafstalk of many grasses (Poaceae) and sedges. A ligule is also a strap-shaped extension of the corolla, such as that of a ...

is blunt but finely serrated, sometimes with hairy edges. The contracted and ellipsoid

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

is usually upright, rather than nodding, measuring long. The lanceolate spikelets are long and have five to twelve flowers. The glumes are acute, with the lower glumes one-nerved and long, and the upper glumes three-nerved and long. The glabrous or slightly scabrous

lemma Lemma may refer to: Language and linguistics * Lemma (morphology), the canonical, dictionary or citation form of a word * Lemma (psycholinguistics), a mental abstraction of a word about to be uttered Science and mathematics * Lemma (botany), a ...

s are prominently nerved and long, with awns long. The

anther The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

s are long. ''B. erectus'' flowers in June and July.

Range

Found on well-drained calcerous soils in disturbed areas, fields, and roadsides, ''B. erectus'' is widespread in Europe, South West Asia, North West Africa, and has been introduced into North America.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q161311 erectus Plants described in 1762 Flora of Europe Flora of North Africa Flora of Western Asia Taxa named by William Hudson (botanist)