Trisetum projectum

Interrupted false oat, Interrupted False Oat

Family: Poaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Interrupted false oat is a California native perennial found in southern California Ranges and the Sierra Nevada Mountains in dry to moist meadows, streambanks, and open conifer forest areas at elevations of 1,220 to 2,870 meters. Flowering from July to September, this plant produces green spikelets with delicate curved awns arranged in an interrupted spike-like inflorescence. Growing in dense clumps with stems 35 to 90 centimeters tall, it develops soft, densely hairy stems. Its leaves are narrow, about 2 to 3 millimeters wide, with soft hairs and tiny ciliate ligules less than 1.5 millimeters long. The plant's distinctive interrupted inflorescence features branches 5 to 30 millimeters long, with spikelets extending from base to tip.

Habitat: dry to moist sites, meadows, streambanks, open areas in conifer forest

Bloom period: Jul-Sep

Elevation: 1220-2870 m

Bioregions: s CaRH, SNH

California counties: Mariposa, Nevada, El Dorado, Placer, Tuolumne, Fresno, Tulare, Mono, Alpine, Plumas, Yuba, Sierra, Butte, Shasta, Madera, Amador

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.