Stipa Explained

Stipa is a genus of around 300 large perennial hermaphroditic grasses collectively known as feather grass, needle grass, and spear grass. They are placed in the subfamily Pooideae and the tribe Stipeae, which also contains many species formerly assigned to Stipa, which have since been reclassified into new genera.

Many species are important forage crops. Several species such as Stipa brachytricha, S. arundinacea, S. splendens, S. calamagrostis, S. gigantea and S. pulchra are used as ornamental plants. One former species, esparto grass (Macrochloa tenacissima), is used for crafts and extensively in paper making.

It is a coarse grass with inrolled leaves and a panicle patterned inflorescence.^[1]

Ecology

Species of the genus Stipa can occur in grasslands^[2] or in savanna habitats. Certain specific prairie plant associations are dominated by grasses of the genus Stipa, which genus often lends its name to the terminology of some prairie types.^[3] In some areas of the western United States grasses of the genus Stipa form a significant part of the understory of Blue Oak savannas, and were even a more important element prehistorically before the invasion of many European grasses.^[4]

Selected species

• Stipa avenacea  - black oat grass
• Stipa baicalensis Roshev.
• Stipa barbata Desf.
• Stipa bavarica
• Stipa borysthenica
• Stipa brachytricha  - Korean feather grass
• Stipa canadensis
• Stipa capensis
• Stipa capillata L.
• Stipa coreana Honda – Korean needlegrass^[5]
• Stipa grandis P.A.Smirn.
• Stipa joannis Čelak.
• Stipa leptogluma
• Stipa mexicana
• Stipa milleana
• Stipa mollis
• Stipa pennata L.  - feather grass
• Stipa pulcherrima
• Stipa speciosa
• Stipa tirsa Steven
• Stipa tulcanensis
• Stipa turkestanica Hack.
• Stipa zalesskii Wilensky

Formerly placed here

See main article: Stipeae.

• Achnatherum calamagrostis (L.) P.Beauv. (as S. calamagrostis (L.) Wahlenb.)
• Achnatherum robustum (Vasey) Barkworth (as S. robusta (Vasey) Scribn.)
• Anemanthele lessoniana (Steud.) Veldkamp (as Stipa arundinacea Hook.f.)^[6]
• Celtica gigantea (Link) F. M. Vazquez & Barkworth (as S. gigantea Link)
• Eriocoma arida (as S. arida)
• Hesperostipa comata (as S. comata)
• Hesperostipa spartea (Trin.) Barkworth (as Stipa spartea Trin.)^[7]
• Jarava ichu Ruiz & Pav. (as S. ichu (Ruiz & Pav.) Kunth)
• Macrochloa tenacissima (Loefl. ex L.) Kunth (as S. tenacissima Loefl. ex L.)
• Nassella leucotricha (Trin. & Rupr.) R.W.Pohl (as S. leucotricha Trin. & Rupr.)
• Nassella pulchra (Hitchc.) Barkworth (as S. pulchra Hitchc.)
• Nassella viridula (Trin.) Barkworth (as S. viridula Trin.)^[8]
• Neotrinia splendens (Trin.) M.Nobis, P.D.Gudkova & A.Nowak (as S. splendens Trin.)
• Oryzopsis hymenoides (Ricker.) (as S. hymenoides Roem. & Schult.)^{[9] [10]}

See also

• Nassella

Notes and References

1. Book: Morley . Thomas . Spring Flora of Minnesota . 1966 . The University of Minnesota Press . 47.
2. Elgaily Osman Ahmed, 1983
3. Ecological Society of America, 1921
4. • C. Michael Hogan, 2008
5. Book: English Names for Korean Native Plants. Korea National Arboretum. 2015. 978-89-97450-98-5. Pocheon. 647. 24 December 2016. Korea Forest Service. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20170525105020/http://www.forest.go.kr/kna/special/download/English_Names_for_Korean_Native_Plants.pdf. 25 May 2017.
6. Web site: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Synonyms of Anemanthele lessoniana (Steud.) Veldkamp. . 2022-08-26 . wcsp.science.kew.org.
7. Web site: Hesperostipa spartea (Trin.) Barkworth Plants of the World Online Kew Science . 2022-08-26 . Plants of the World Online . en.
8. Web site: Nassella viridula (Trin.) Barkworth Plants of the World Online Kew Science . 2022-08-26 . Plants of the World Online . en.
9. Web site: Oryzopsis hymenoides International Plant Names Index . 2022-08-26 . www.ipni.org.
10. Web site: GRIN Species Records of Stipa . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924075404/https://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?11604 . 2015-09-24 . 2011-06-27 . Germplasm Resources Information Network . United States Department of Agriculture.