Phleum alpinum
Encyclopedia
Phleum alpinum is a species of grass
known by the common name Alpine timothy.
, inhabiting northern areas of the Northern Hemisphere
, as well as extending down through the Americas to southern South America
. It can be found on islands in the subantarctic
region such as South Georgia Island
, on which it is one of the most common plant species.
is a cylindrical to oval mass of spikelets up to 6 centimeters long and 1.2 wide.
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
known by the common name Alpine timothy.
Distribution
Phleum alpinum has a circumboreal distributionCircumboreal Region
The Circumboreal Region is a floristic region within the Holarctic Kingdom in Eurasia and North America, as delineated by such geobotanists as Josias Braun-Blanquet and Armen Takhtajan....
, inhabiting northern areas of the Northern Hemisphere
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of a planet that is north of its equator—the word hemisphere literally means “half sphere”. It is also that half of the celestial sphere north of the celestial equator...
, as well as extending down through the Americas to southern South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. It can be found on islands in the subantarctic
Subantarctic
The Subantarctic is a region in the southern hemisphere, located immediately north of the Antarctic region. This translates roughly to a latitude of between 46° – 60° south of the Equator. The subantarctic region includes many islands in the southern parts of the Indian Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and...
region such as South Georgia Island
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the southern Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote and inhospitable collection of islands, consisting of South Georgia and a chain of smaller islands, known as the South Sandwich...
, on which it is one of the most common plant species.
Description
Phleum alpinum is a perennial bunchgrass forming loose clumps 20 to 60 centimeters tall. The inflorescenceInflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a cylindrical to oval mass of spikelets up to 6 centimeters long and 1.2 wide.