Festuca rubra L.

red fescue, Chewwing's fescue


Info

Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus etymology: Festuca = "stem / straw" [Latin]
Species etymology: rubra = "red" [Latin] refering to the florets which are sometimes red
Photosynthetic type: C3 (cool season)
Nativity: naturalized - intentional
First recorded in Hawaiʻi: 1912

Map

 Distribution of Festuca rubra in Hawaiʻi.
 Distribution of Festuca rubra in Hawaiʻi.

Inflorescence

Festuca rubra Inflorescence
Festuca rubra Inflorescence

Plant

Festuca rubra Plant
Festuca rubra Plant
Festuca rubra Plant
Festuca rubra Plant
Festuca rubra Plant
Festuca rubra Plant
Festuca rubra Plant

Habit

Festuca rubra Habit
Festuca rubra Habit
Festuca rubra Habit

Spikelets

Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets
Festuca rubra Spikelets

Landscape

Festuca rubra Landscape
Festuca rubra Landscape

Culm base

Festuca rubra Culm base

Viviparous inflorescence

Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence
Festuca rubra Viviparous inflorescence

Description

Plants usually rhizomatous, usually loosely to densely ces¬pitose, culms sometimes single and widely spaced, sometimes stoloniferous. Culms (8)10-120 (130) cm, erect or decumbent, glabrous and smooth. Sheaths closed for about 3/4 their length when young, readily splitting with age, usually pubescent, at least distally, hairs retrorse or antrorse, sometimes glabrous, not persistent, older vegetative shoot sheaths shredding into fibers; collars glabrous; ligules 0.1-0.5 mm; blades usually conduplicate or convolute and 0.3-2.5 mm in diameter, sometimes flat and 1.5-7 mm wide, abaxial surfaces glabrous, smooth or scabrous, adaxial surfaces scabrous or pubescent, veins 5-9(13), ribs (3)5-7(9), usually conspicuous; abaxial sclerenchyma in 5-9(13) discrete or partly confluent strands, rarely forming a complete band; adaxial sclerenchyma sometimes present in fascicles opposite the veins; girders and pillars not developed. Inflorescences (2)3.5-25(30) cm, usually open or loosely contracted panicles, occasionally racemes, with 1-3 branches per node, lower branches with 2+ spikelets; branches erect or spreading, stiff or lax, glabrous, scabrous, or pubescent. Spikelets (6)7-17 mm, with 3-10 florets. Glumes ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, exceeded by the distal florets; lower glumes (1.5)2-6(7) mm; upper glumes (3)3.5-8.5 mm; lemmas 4-9.5 mm, usually glabrous and smooth, sometimes scabrous towards the apices, sometimes densely pubescent throughout, attenuate or acuminate in side view, awned, awns (0.1)0.4-4.5 mm; paleas slightly shorter than to about equaling the lemmas, intercostal region puberulent distally; anthers 1.8-4.5 mm; ovary apices glabrous. 2n = 28, 42, 56, 70.
(Description source: Barkworth, M.E., Capels, K.M. & Long, S. (eds.) 1993. Flora of North America, north of Mexico. Volume 24. Magnoliophyta: Commelinidae (in part): Poaceae, Part 1. Oxford University Press, New York. 911 pp. http://floranorthamerica.org/Festuca_rubra )

Perennials, occasionally producing short, delicate rhizomes; culms loosely tufted, red-tinged or purple-tinged at base, erect to ascending, 4.5-10 dm tall, glabrous. Sheaths 3-4 cm long, striate, usually glaucous; ligule ca. 0.5 mm long; blades 8- 17 cm long, usually involute, sparsely scabrous On margins and at the acute apex. Inflorescences paniculate, 3-20 cm long, usually narrow and contracted, with erect or ascending branches 2-4 mm long; spikelets usually pale green or glaucous, often purple-tinged, 4-7-flowered, 10-15 mm long (including awns), rachilla scabrous; glumes attenuate, sparsely scabrous on upper 1/2 of keel, first glume 2.5-3 mm long; palea 4-5 mm long, keels scabrous, apex acute. Caryopsis pale brown, oblong, 3-4 mm long, dorsally compressed and sulcate. [2n = 14, 28, 35, 42-44, 46, 47, 49, 53, 55, 56, 60, 63, 64, 68-70.]
(Description source: O’Connor, P.J. 1990. Poaceae, pp. 1481–1604. In: Wagner W.L., Herbst D.R. & Sohmer S.H. (eds.)., Manual of the flowering plant of Hawaiʻi. Vol. 2. University of Hawaii Press & Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu )