Melica subulata
Melica subulata is a species of grass known by the common name Alaska oniongrass.
| Melica subulata | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Pooideae |
| Genus: | Melica |
| Species: | M. subulata |
| Binomial name | |
| Melica subulata | |
Distribution
It is native to western North America from Alaska to California to Colorado, where it grows in moist habitat, often in forests.
Melica subulata is a main understory member of the Douglas-fir/Alaska oniongrass plant community, a rare plant association that occurs on the southern edge of Vancouver Island on the Strait of Georgia.[1] This plant community once had a wider range, occurring also along the Puget Sound and in the Willamette Valley.[1]
Description
Melica subulata is a rhizomatous perennial grass with clustered onionlike corms at the base of each stem. It grows to a maximum height near 1.3 meters. The inflorescence is a narrow or spreading panicle of cylindrical, pointed spikelets which may be nearly 3 centimeters long.
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