Festuca rubra L. subsp. rubra s.l. Sp. Pl.: 74. 1753.
ZI YANG MAO.
Subg. Festuca L. sect. Aulaxyer.
Vegetative morphology. Plants yellowish green, or bluish gray green, or deep green. Plants stiffly erect, or softly erect. Plants loosely tufted. Plants with bases purplish (reddish colour usually apparent), or not purplish. Plants with shoots extravaginal. Rhizomes present (sometimes suppressed in rocky environments). Culms 15–90(–120) cm tall. Culms internodes glabrous. Culms nodes 1–2. Butt sheaths absent. Sheaths shorter than the internode, or longer than the internode. Sheaths glabrous, or with trichomes (usually retrose). Sheaths closed more than half their length. Sheaths not conspicuous at the base of the plant. Sheaths splitting between the veins. Sheaths, of uppermost culm leaf not inflated. Collars glabrous. Auricles erect swellings, or absent. Auricular cilia absent. Ligules 0.1–0.5 mm long. Ligules margins without cilia. Leaf blades more or less lax. Leaf blades flat, or conduplicate. Leaf blades 6–30 cm long. Leaf blades 1–4 mm wide. Leaf blades adaxial surfaces with trichomes. Leaf blades adaxial surfaces scabrous. Leaf blades abaxial surfaces glabrous. Flag leaves blades 3–8 cm long. Leaf blades 0.4–1.1 mm wide. Leaf blades 0.65–1.25 mm deep. Veins 5–7. Adaxial to abaxial sclerenchyma strands absent. Abaxial sclerenchyma poorly developed. Abaxial sclerenchyma in narrow or discrete strands. Ribs 5 (well defined).
Floral morphology. Inflorescences (2–)5–14(–20) cm long. Inflorescences branches 1.5–8 cm long. Inflorescences branches at the lowest nodes 1–4. Inflorescences branches appressed after anthesis (usually, lower branches sometimes spreading). 3–7 fertile spikelets on the longest branches. Inflorescences branches angular in cross section. Inflorescences branches scabrous all over (rarely), or scabrous on the angles (usually). Spikelets proliferating present, or absent (plants with proliferating spikelets have sometimes been referred to as F. prolifera (Piper) Fernald). Spikelets loosely scattered in an open panicle with slender branches, or aggregated towards the ends of the branches. Spikelets (6–)9–12(–13) mm long. Spikelets 3–4.5 mm wide. Florets (2–)4–6(–10). Glumes glabrous, or with trichomes. Glumes vestiture at the apex, or over most of the outer surface. Glumes margins broadly membranous. First glume (2–)2.5–3.5(–4.5) mm long. First glume 1(–3) nerved. Second glume 3.5–5.5(–6) mm long. Second glume 3 nerved. Second glume shorter than first lemma. Rachilla internodes antrorsely scabrous. Lemmas (4–)5–7(–8) mm long. Lemmas nerveless in dorsal view or sometimes with only the centre vein distinct. Lemmas glabrous, or with trichomes (usually). Lemmas trichomes on the upper portion. Lemmas apices awns (0.3–)1–3.3(–5) mm long. Paleas 5–6.6 mm long. Paleas inter-keel regions pubescent. Lodicules with marginal teeth. Lodicules glabrous. Lodicules 0.8–1.1 mm long. Anthers (1–)2.5–3.5(–4.5) mm long. Ovary apices glabrous. Fruits 3–4.5 mm long. Cytology. 2n = 14, or 21, or 28, or 42, or 49, or 53, or 56, or 64, or 70.
Ecology. Common in China. 600–4500 m.
Notes. Members of the F. rubra complex may be identified by the presence of young tiller sheaths that are fused in a tube almost to the top (Stace et al. 1992). One may be alerted to look for this character if the sheaths are reddish brown with retrorse hairs and the older sheaths are fibrillose. Leaf cross sections of the F. rubra complex are characteristic (Aiken and Consaul 1995). Close to, or within, F. rubra subsp. rubra complex as it widely understood are the followings: Anthers 2–2.5 mm ...F. rubra subsp. rubra Anthers 1–2 mm...F. rubra subsp. clarkei F. rubra subsp. rubra includes 3 varieties: var. rubra with smooth lemmas, lower glume 2–3 mm and upper glume 3.5–4.5 mm; var. nankataizanensis Ohwi with densely hirsute on lemmas backside and 1–1.5 mm anthers; var. niitakensis Ohwi with scabrous on lemmas backside and 1.5–2.5 mm anthers. The later two varieties are endemic in Taiwan.
Illustrations. • Roadside photograph of "red" fescue plants. Roadside planting of F. rubra subsp. rubra in Western Canada. Note reddish colour of inflorescences, and narrow leaves in a basal tuft. Photogaph S. Aiken. No voucher. • Habitat. Festuca rubra originally planted for a golf course, but now growing under trees in a pine plantation. Canada, Ottawa, Bells Cornes. July, 2002. Photogrpah by Xiang Chen.. • Rhizome. Plant from proceeding image pulled up and puleed apart to show the rhizomes (at arrow) between the tillers). • Field grown plants. Plants of F. rubra subsp. rubra in an experimental plot at the Central Experimental Farm, Ottawa. The upper plant is F. rubra; the lower plant is F. rubra subsp. richardsonii, transplanted to Ottawa, from the Yukon. • Leaf anatomy. Leaf cross section of F. rubra subsp. rubra. Leaf blades are 0.4–1.1 mm wide and 0.65–1.25 mm deep, with 5–7 veins; adaxial to abaxial sclerenchyma strands are absent. Abaxial sclerenchyma strands are well developed, in discrete, relatively narrow strands opposite the veins. There are 5 well defined ribs. • Inflorescence. Post-anthesis, inflorecence from plants photographed in Ottawa, Canda. Note the lower branches are still spreading at right angles to the rachis, while upper branches are appressed. • Distribution in China. This species is available as commercial grass seed and may be more widely distributed in China.
Cite this publication as: ‘Xiang Chen, S.G. Aiken, and M.J. Dallwitz (2002 onwards). Festuca of China: Descriptions, Illustrations, Identification, and Information Retrieval. Version: 4th February 2003. http://www.cdelta.ibcas.ac.cn’.
