Phleum alpinum L.

Alpine timothy (en), Fléole des Alpes (fr)

Species

Angiosperms > Poales > Poaceae > Phleum

Characteristics

Perennial, shortly rhizomatous. Culms loosely tufted, erect or decumbent at base, 5–40(–60) cm tall, 3–4-noded. Leaf sheaths glabrous, upper slightly inflated; leaf blades broadly linear, 2–13 cm, 2–9 mm wide, the upper shorter than the lower, glabrous, apex acute; ligule 2–3 mm, obtuse. Panicle broadly cylindrical to ovoid, 1–6 × 0.6–1.2 cm, usually purplish; branches adnate to central axis. Spikelets oblong, 3–4 mm (excluding awns); rachilla extension absent; glumes oblong, membranous, scaberulous, lower softly hairy on margins, keel conspicuously pectinate-ciliate, apex truncate, cuspidate into a stiff, 1.5–3 mm, glabrous or ciliate awn; lemma ca. 2 mm, 5-veined, veins puberulent, apex truncate; anthers 1–1.5 mm. Caryopsis ca. 1.5 mm. Fl. and fr. Jun–Oct. 2n = 14, 28.
More
Tufted, 2–5 dm, the culms smooth at the summit, the base not bulbous, but tending to be decumbent or shortly creeping; upper sheaths distended, especially near their middle; blades usually 3–6 mm wide, rough-margined; infl ellipsoid to thick-cylindric, 1–5 cm × 8–12 mm; glumes 2.5–3.5 mm, hispid-ciliate on the keel, tipped with an awn 1.5–3 mm, the thin margins usually purple; 2n=14, 28. Wet meadows and bogs; circumboreal at high latitudes, s. to the mts. of New England, and in n. Mich. and throughout the western cordillera; also in the colder parts of the s. hemisphere.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination anemogamy
Spread epizoochory
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.2 - 0.4
Root system rhizome
Rooting depth (meter) 0.3
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

Light 5-7
Soil humidity 5-7
Soil texture -
Soil acidity 3-7
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 4-10

Usage

Uses animal food fodder
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Can be grown by seedlings.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Habit

Phleum alpinum habit picture by Jacques Zuber (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum habit picture by francois tissot (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum habit picture by josef casutt (cc-by-sa)

Leaf

Phleum alpinum leaf picture by Franco Colnago (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum leaf picture by Nicolas (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum leaf picture by Martin Allan (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Phleum alpinum flower picture by Jos Jos (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum flower picture by John Sycorax (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum flower picture by Franco Colnago (cc-by-sa)

Fruit

Phleum alpinum fruit picture by Steve Orridge (cc-by-sa)
Phleum alpinum fruit picture by Patrick Jansen (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Phleum alpinum world distribution map, present in Afghanistan, Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Switzerland, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, Micronesia (Federated States of), Greece, Guatemala, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, Norway, Nepal, Pakistan, Poland, Korea (Democratic People's Republic of), Romania, Sweden, Turks and Caicos Islands, Taiwan, Province of China, Ukraine, United States of America, and Uzbekistan

Conservation status

Phleum alpinum threat status: Least Concern

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:415775-1
WFO ID wfo-0000889952
COL ID 4GFX6
BDTFX ID 48892
INPN ID 113175
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Plantinia alpina Phleum parviceps Phleum rhaeticum Plantinia tournefortii Phleum alpinum f. bracteolatum Phleum alpinum f. subcapitatum Phleum arcticum Phleum capitatum Phleum commutatum Phleum geniculatum Phleum gerardii Phleum mouterdei Phleum nigricans Phleum ovatum Phleum subalpinum Phleum alpinum f. alpinum Phleum haenkeanum Phleum vaginatum Phleum alpinum subsp. commutatum Phleum alpinum subsp. rhaeticum Phleum alpinum var. ambiguum Phleum alpinum var. americanum Phleum alpinum var. parviceps Phleum alpinum var. scribnerianum Phleum alpinum var. subcapitatum Phleum commutatum var. americanum Phleum pratense subsp. alpinum Phleum pratense var. alpinum Phleum alpinum var. commutatum Phleum alpinum subsp. alpinum Phleum alpinum var. commutatum Phleum pratense var. alpinum Phleum pratense subsp. alpinum Phleum commutatum var. commutatum Phleum alpinum