10d. var. ramulosum (Torr.) Lelong
P. microcarpon Muhl. ex Elliott
Dichanthelium microcarpon (Muhl. ex Elliott) Mohlenbr.
Main stems with the nodes densely bearded with long,
spreading to downwardly pointed hairs. Leaf sheaths glabrous
or the lowermost sparsely hairy along the margins, rarely with pale, glandular
spots. Leaf blades relatively broad, those of the leaves toward the
middle of the main stem 7–12(–15) mm wide, broadest at or just above the base,
glabrous or sparsely hairy along the margins near the base. Spikelets 1.5–1.8
mm long, rounded at the tip, glabrous. 2n=18. May–September
(vernal), July–October (autumnal).
Scattered in the Ozark and
Mississippi Lowlands Divisions (eastern U.S.
west to Illinois, Missouri,
and Texas). Bottomland forests, bases of bluffs,
acid seeps, fens, banks of creeks and rivers, and margins of ponds and lakes;
less commonly moist depressions of upland prairies and mesic upland forests;
also roadsides and moist, disturbed areas.
This variety can be difficult to separate from var. dichotomum,
particularly at the autumnal stage, when both taxa often produce large numbers
of branches with narrow leaves.