Hagenbuch, K.W. and D.E. Lemke. 2015. Grasses of the Texas Hill Country: Vegetative key and descriptions. Phytoneuron 2015-4: 1–93. Published 7 January 2015. ISSN 2153 733X GRASSES OF THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY: VEGETATIVE KEY AND DESCRIPTIONS KARL W. HAGENBUCH Department of Biological Sciences San Antonio College 1300 San Pedro Avenue San Antonio, Texas 78212-4299
[email protected] DAVID E. LEMKE Department of Biology Texas State University 601 University Drive San Marcos, Texas 78666-4684
[email protected] ABSTRACT A key and a set of descriptions, based solely on vegetative characteristics, is provided for the identification of 66 genera and 160 grass species, both native and naturalized, of the Texas Hill Country. The principal characters used (features of longevity, growth form, roots, rhizomes and stolons, culms, leaf sheaths, collars, auricles, ligules, leaf blades, vernation, vestiture, and habitat) are discussed and illustrated. This treatment should prove useful at times when reproductive material is not available. Because of its size and variation in environmental conditions, Texas provides habitat for well over 700 species of grasses (Shaw 2012). For identification purposes, the works of Correll and Johnston (1970); Gould (1975) and, more recently, Shaw (2012) treat Texas grasses in their entirety. In addition to these comprehensive works, regional taxonomic treatments have been done for the grasses of the Cross Timbers and Prairies (Hignight et al. 1988), the South Texas Brush Country (Lonard 1993; Everitt et al. 2011), the Gulf Prairies and Marshes (Hatch et al. 1999), and the Trans-Pecos (Powell 1994) natural regions. In these, as well as in numerous other manuals and keys, accurate identification of grass species depends on the availability of reproductive material.