Black Gramma Grass
Author: Ray Bowers

Description:
Black grama is a perennial grass that is 20 to 45cm (7.5 to 17.5 in) tall. Stems are round with long narrow leaves that are alternately two-ranked with parallel venation. The flowers are found on widely spaced branches.

Geographic range:
Black gramma is found from Arizona east to Texas and south into Mexico. It is found through New Mexico

Habitat:
Black gramma is found in semidesert to desert areas with rocky or sandy slopes and flats.

Reproduction and Development:
The flowers bloom from July to October. The flowers are located in eight to eighteen spikelets on one side of widely spaced branches that are 2 to 5cm (0.75 to 2.0in) long. The spikelets contain a single flower. The lemmas have three hair-like fibers called an awns that are 4 to 8mm (0.125 to 0.5in) long. Pollination is by the wind.

• Black gramma grass is considered a good forage plant for cattle, and may be overgrazed at times.
  
• The Genus name is to honor a Spanish botanist by the name of Cladius Boutelou.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Bouteloua
Species: Bouteloua eriopoda

References:
Allred, Kelly W. 2000. A Field Guide to the Flora of the Jornada Plain. Las Cruces: NMSU Department of Animal and Range Science.

Allred, Kelly W. 1997. A Field Guide to the Grasses of New Mexico. Las Cruces: NMSU Department of Agricultural Communication.

Gould, Frank W. 1975. The Grasses of Texas. College Station, Texas: Texas A & M University Press.

Wooton, E.O. and Paul C. Standley. 1915. Flora of New Mexico. Contributions from the United States National Herbarium, Vol 19. Washington :Government Printing Office.

Related Terms: Magnoliophyta, Liliopsida