Distribution: Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east to the Rocky Mountains, east across Canada to the Atlantic Coast.

Habitat: Mountain meadows, streambanks, and lake margins to alpine ridges.

Flowers: June-August

Origin: Native

Growth Duration: Perennial

Conservation Status: Not of concern

Pollination: Wind

Strongly tufted perennial 1.5-6 dm. tall, the culms hollow.

Sheaths open; ligules obtuse to truncate, pubescent, 1.5-3.5 mm. long; leaves flat, deep green, 4-6 mm. wide, the tips prow-like.

Inflorescence an open panicle 5-10 cm. long; spikelets usually 2-flowered, purplish-tinged; articulation above the glumes; glumes subequal, elliptic in outline, about 5 mm. long, acute, the first 1-nerved, the second 3-nerved, exceeding the upper floret; lemmas obscurely 3-nerved, erose, about 2.5 mm. long, the hairs on the callus about half as long; lemma awned from just above mid-length, the awn stout and twisted, about 2.5 mm. long.

Utricle