Chasmanthium laxum

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Common name: slender woodoats [1], slender spikegrass [2]

Chasmanthium laxum
Chasmanthium laxum NRCS.jpg
Photo from USDA NRCS Plants Database.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta - Flowering plants
Class: Liliopsida - Moncots
Order: Cyperales
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Chasmanthium
Species: C. laxum
Binomial name
Chasmanthium laxum
(L) Yates
CHAS LAXU DIST.JPG
Natural range of Chasmanthium laxum from USDA NRCS Plants Database.

Taxonomic Notes

Synonyms: Uniola laxa (Linnaeus) Britton, Sterns, & Poggenburg; Chasmanthium laxum var. laxum

Varieties: none

Description

C. laxum is a perennial graminoid of the Poaceae family native to North America. [1]

Distribution

C. laxum can be found along the southeastern coast from Texas to New York. [1]

Ecology

Habitat

C. laxum can be found in savanna-pocosin ecotones, sandhill-pocosin ecotones, moist hardwood swamps, bottomland hardwood forests, mesic hammocks, and other moist habitats.[2][3] It also occurs in upland closed-canopy forests where fire is excluded, including slope forest and upland hardwood (beech-magnolia) forest.[3]

Phenology

C. laxum flowers in June and July. [4] It is also shade-tolerant, enabling it to thrive under the canopy of other plants. [5]

Fire ecology

C. laxum is not fire resistant and has no fire tolerance. [1]

Use by animals

C. laxum is highly palatable to browsing and grazing animals. [1]

Conservation and Management

C. laxum is listed as an endangered species by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation Division of Land and Forests, and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. [1]

Cultivation and restoration

Photo Gallery

References and notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 USDA Plant Database https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=CHLA6
  2. 2.0 2.1 Weakley, A. S. (2015). Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States. Chapel Hill, NC, University of North Carolina Herbarium.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Florida Natural Areas Inventory 2010. Guide to the natural communities of Florida: 2010 edition. Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, Florida, 228 pg.
  4. PanFlora Author: Gil Nelson URL: http://www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/ Date Accessed: 5/18/18
  5. Iglay, R. B., et al. (2010). "Effect of plant community composition on plant response to fire and herbicide treatments." Forest Ecology and Management 260: 543-548.