Bouteloua is a genus of plants in the grass family Poaceae. Members of the genus are commonly known as grama grass.

Description

Bouteloua hirsuta (4087876904).jpg'' ([hairy grama), showing the flattened rachis]] Bouteloua includes both annual and perennial grasses, which frequently form stolons. Species have an inflorescence of 1 to 80 racemes or spikes positioned alternately on the culm (stem). The rachis (stem) of the spike is flattened. The spikelets are positioned along one side of the spike. Each spikelet contains one fertile floret, and usually one sterile floret.

Taxonomy

The genus was first described by Mariano Lagasca in 1805. It was named for Claudio and Esteban Boutelou, 19th-century Spanish botanists. David Griffiths produced a 1912 monograph on the genus.

Species

Species of Bouteloua include:

Distribution

Bouteloua is found only in the Americas, with most diversity centered in the southwestern United States. It also occurs in the Ciénaga de Zapata Biosphere Reserve of Cuba.

Uses

Many species are important livestock forage, especially Bouteloua gracilis (blue grama).