''Calamagrostis ophitidis'', the serpentine reedgrass, is a species of
bunch grass in the family
Poaceae
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 lawns an ...
.
It is
endemic to
California, where it grows in the
serpentine soil
Serpentine soil is an uncommon soil type produced by weathered ultramafic rock such as peridotite and its metamorphic derivatives such as serpentinite. More precisely, serpentine soil contains minerals of the serpentine subgroup, especially anti ...
s of the mountain slopes north of the
San Francisco Bay Area.
Description
It is a
perennial grass forming clumps reaching heights between 60 centimeters and three feet/one meter. The
inflorescence is a dense, thinly bushy array of rough, pale-colored spikelets.
References
External links
Jepson Manual Treatment for ''Calamagrostis ophitidis''USDA Plants Profile of ''Calamagrostis ophitidis''''Calamagrostis ophitidis'' — U.C. Photo gallery
ophitidis
Endemic flora of California
Native grasses of California
Bunchgrasses of North America
Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands
Natural history of the California Coast Ranges
Natural history of the San Francisco Bay Area
{{Pooideae-stub