Distribution: Occurring west of the Cascades crest in Washington and east in the Columbia River Gorge; British Columbia to California, east to Idaho and Wyoming, also in the southeastern U.S. and northeastern North America.
Habitat: Balds, prairies, meadows, forest openings, roadsides, wastelots, and other open areas at low to middle elevations.
Flowers: May-August
Origin: Introduced Eurasia and North Africa
Growth Duration: Annual
Conservation Status: Not of concern
Pollination: Wind
Delicate annuals, the culms 1 to several, 5-30 cm. tall, hollow, mostly glabrous.
Sheaths open; ligules 1.5-3.5 mm. long, puberulent, the tip blunt; blades involute, filiform, under 1 mm. broad.
Inflorescence an open panicle, up to 6 cm. long and nearly as broad; spikelets 2-flowered; glumes subequal, keeled, 2.5-2.8 mm. long, 1-nerved; lemmas rounded on the back, 3-nerved, bifid at the tip, 2-2.3 mm. long, both awned, the awns 2.5-3.5 mm. long, attached below mid-length, twisted and bent; lodicules small, lanceolate.
Utricle
Publication: Sp. Pl. 1: 66. 1753. 1753.
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var. caryophyllea – silver hairgrass
Occurring west of the Cascades crest in Washington and east in the Columbia River Gorge; British Columbia to California, east to Idaho and Wyoming, also in the southeastern U.S. and northeastern North America.
PNW Herbaria: Specimen records of Aira caryophyllea in the Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria database
WA Flora Checklist: Aira caryophyllea checklist entry
OregonFlora: Aira caryophyllea information
E-Flora BC: Aira caryophyllea atlas page
CalPhotos: Aira caryophyllea photos
