Agrostis capillaris L. Sp. Pl.

Cho, Yanghoon, Kim, Jonghwan, Han, Jeong Eun & Lee, Byoungyoon, 2016, Vascular plants of Poaceae (Ⅰ) new to Korea: Vulpia bromoides (L.) Gray, Agrostis capillaris L. and Eragrostis pectinacea (Michx.) Nees, Journal of Species Research 5 (1), pp. 14-21 : 16-18

2. Agrostis capillaris L. Sp. Pl. 1: 75. 1753.

Korean name: Deul-gyeo-i-sak (ṻdḍğ)

Perennial. Rhizomes elongated, scaly, short. Culms tufted caespitose, erect to geniculate or decumbent ascending, 40-90 cm long, rooting at base, 3-5-noded; culm-internodes smooth. Leaf-sheaths without keel, smooth. Leaf-blades linear, flat or inrolled, 5-15 cm long, 2-4 mm wide, surface ribbed, smooth or scaberulous, apex acuminate. Ligules eciliate membrane, 0.5-2 mm long, truncate. Panicle open, oblong to ovate in outline, 10- 25 cm long, 5-12 cm wide, very lax, branches 3-6 per node, primary branches whorled at lower nodes, spreading, capillary, terete, smooth, slightly flexuous, smooth or almost so, bare in lower half. Spikelets solitary, 1.5- 2.5 mm, purplish brown, pedicelled, comprising 1 fertile florets, without rhachilla extension, lanceolate or oblong, laterally compressed, 2-3.5 mm long, disarticulating below each fertile floret. Glumes persistent, elliptic-lanceolate, similar, exceeding apex of florets, shiny. Lower glume lanceolate, 1-1.1 length of upper glume, membranous, 1-keeled, 1-veined, scabrid along keel distally, apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate, 1.3-1.5 length of adjacent fertile lemma, membranous, 1-keeled, 1 -veined, apex acute, callus minutely hairy. Lemma elliptic to oblong, 2/3-3/4 spikelet length, 1.2-2.5 mm long, hyaline, without keel, 3-5-veined, usually awnless, apex truncate. Palea oblong, 1/2-3/4 length of lemma, hyaline, 2-veined, apex obtuse. Lodicules 2, lanceolate, membranous. Anthers 3, 1-1.5 mm long. Stigmas 2, laterally exserted. Caryopsis with adherent pericarp, ellipsoid, isodiametric, biconvex, estipitate, without sulcus, 1 mm long, smooth, apex unappendaged. Hilum linear, 0.9 length of caryopsis. Flowering and Fruiting at May to June.

Habitats. Disturbed area. cemetery sides, rough grassland, roadsides.

Distribution. W, M, S, and NE Asia, N Africa, Europe, America.

Specimens examined. Boseok-ri, Impi-myeon, Gunsan-si , Jeollabuk-do, N 35°96′24.53″, E 126°85′82.58″, 21 May. 2015. J. H . Kim 151911 (2 sheets, KB), Woryeon-ri, Hoehyeon-myeon, Gunsan-si , Jeollabuk-do, N 35°89′53.94″, E 126°73′32.48″, 03 Jun. 2015. J. H . Kim 152018 (2 sheets, KB), Eupnae-ri, Impi-myeon, Gunsan-si , Jeollabuk-do, N 35°98′26.03″, E 126°85′17.00″, 04 Jun. 2015. J. H . Kim 152029 (3 sheets, KB), Gunsan-Lake, Soryong-dong, Gunsan-si , Jeollabuk-do, N 35°93′62.81″, E 126°74′70.50″, 04 Jun. 2015. J. H . Kim 152033 (2 sheets, KB), Banwol-ri, Baekgu-myeon, Gimje-si , Jeollabuk-do, N 35°89′39.32″, E 126°96′19.04″, 05 Jun. 2015. J. H . Kim 152035 (2 sheets, KB) .

The Agrostis L. a large cosmopolitan genus of the family Poaceae , found in nearly all the areas in the world, includes 249 species ( Clayton, 2006). Some species of the Agrostis are used for pasture or lawn grasses. In Korea, numbers of Agrostis taxa were counted to seven ( Lee, 2007) or nine ( Korea National Arboretum, 2011; Lee et al., 2011). Most distinguishing characters to identify the genus are spikelets consisting of one floret, and not deciduous as a whole, but disarticulating below each fertile floret at maturity. Agrostis capillaries , which is newly recorded to Korean vascular plants, resembles other Agrostis species such as A. gigantea or A. stolonifera already listed as members of “National List of Species of Korea, vascular plants” ( Lee et al., 2011). A. capillaris differs in having underground rhizomes and habitat to live in dry grass places from A. gigantean with aerial rhizomes and habitats of banks of lakes or rivers. A. capillaris differs from A. stolonifera in panicles and spikelets. The former species bears spikelets in the upper half of lax panicles whereas the latter have spikelets in lower 1/3 to base of narrowly compacted panicles.