Your help is appreciated. We depend on donations to help keep this site free and up to date for you. Can you please help us?

Donate

Native Plant Trust: Go Botany Discover thousands of New England plants

Pappophorum vaginatum — whiplash pappusgrass

Copyright: various copyright holders. To reuse an image, please click it to see who you will need to contact.

Facts

Whiplash pappusgrass is a rare visitor to New England, having been collected only from the waste area of a nineteenth century wool carding factory in Maine.

Habitat

Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats)

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.

North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

enlarge

Characteristics

Habitat
terrestrial
New England state
Maine
Leaf blade width
1.5–5 mm
Inflorescence branches
  • the flowers are attached to branches rather than to the main axis of the inflorescence
  • there are no branch points between the base of the inflorescence axis and the flowers, or they are not obvious
Spikelet length
6–8 mm
Glume relative length
  • both glumes are as long or longer than all of the florets
  • neither glume is quite as long as all of the florets
Awn on glume
the glume has no awn
One or more florets
there is more than one floret per spikelet
Lemma awn length
Up to 5 mm
Show all characteristics
  • Flowers

    Anther number
    3
    Awn on glume
    the glume has no awn
    Floret lower bract texture
    the lemma is thin and flexible
    Glume relative length
    • both glumes are as long or longer than all of the florets
    • neither glume is quite as long as all of the florets
    Glume veins
    1
    Inflorescence axis orientation
    the inflorescence axis is straight
    Inflorescence branches
    • the flowers are attached to branches rather than to the main axis of the inflorescence
    • there are no branch points between the base of the inflorescence axis and the flowers, or they are not obvious
    Inflorescence length
    10–25 mm
    Inflorescence type (general)
    • the inflorescence is a spike, or is spike-like, lacking obvious branches
    • the spikelets are borne on stalks or on branches
    Inflorescence type (specific)
    the inflorescence is branched, and the branches do NOT both grow from the same side of the plant AND look like spikes
    Lemma awn base
    the awn is attached right at the tip of the lemma
    Lemma awn length
    Up to 5 mm
    Lemma awn number
    the lemma has more than one awn on it
    Lemma awn orientation
    the awn of the lemma on dried or older plants is curved or bent outwards
    Lemma cross-section
    the lemma is flat or rounded if you cut across the midpoint
    Lemma surface
    the surface of the lemma is relatively smooth (not counting any longitudinal veins or hairs)
    Lemma tip
    the lemma tip is split into two or more points
    Lemma vein number
    7 or more
    One or more florets
    there is more than one floret per spikelet
    Palea relative length
    • palea is longer than lemma
    • palea is one half to fully as long as lemma
    Spikelet axis tip
    there is no extension of the spikelet axis beyond the tip of the spikelet
    Spikelet length
    6–8 mm
    Spikelets spiny
    the spikelets do not appear spiny
  • Leaves

    Leaf blade width
    1.5–5 mm
    Leaf ligule type
    the leaf ligule is in the form of fine hairs
    Leaf sheath closed around stem
    the margins of the leaf sheath are overlapping and not fused together except in the basal half (or less)
    Leaf sheath hairs
    • there are hairs on the surface of the leaf sheath
    • there are no hairs on the surface of the leaf sheath
  • Place

    Habitat
    terrestrial
    New England state
    Maine
    Specific habitat
    man-made or disturbed habitats
  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Stem spacing
    the stems grow close together in compact clusters or tufts

Wetland status

Not classified

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
absent
Maine
present
Massachusetts
absent
New Hampshire
absent
Rhode Island
absent
Vermont
absent

Conservation status

None

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

1.  Pappophorum vaginatum Buckl. E

whiplash pappus grass. ME. Wool waste.

Native to North America?

Yes

Family

Poaceae

Genus

Pappophorum