Plants perennial; not rhizomatous. Culms 40-90 cm, erect; nodes 3-5(7), mainly pubescent; internodes mostly glabrous, puberulent near the nodes. Basal sheaths densely pilose or glabrous; upper sheaths glabrous or almost so, midrib of the culm leaves not abruptly narrowed just below the collar; auricles absent; ligules 1-2 mm, glabrous, truncate or obtuse, sometimes lacerate; blades 5-20 cm long, to 7 mm wide, flat, both surfaces glabrous, sometimes scabrous. Panicles 10-25 cm, open, nodding; branches ascending to spreading. Spikelets 10-30 mm, elliptic to lanceolate, terete to moderately laterally compressed, with 7-12(16) florets. Glumes usually glabrous, sometimes pubescent; lower glumes 5-6.5(7) mm, 1(3)-veined; upper glumes (6)7-9 mm, 3-veined, not mucronate; lemmas 8-11 mm, elliptic, rounded over the midvein, backs and margins pubescent, sometimes nearly glabrous, apices truncate or obtuse, entire, rarely emarginate, lobes shorter than 1 mm; awns 2-4 mm, straight, arising less than 1.5 mm below the lemma apices; anthers 1.8-4 mm. 2n = 28.

Bromus lanatipes grows in a wide range of habitats, at 800-2500 m, from Wyoming through the southwestern United States to northern Mexico.

FNA 2007, Field Guide to Forest & Mtn. Plants of N AZ 2009

Common Name: woolly brome Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Graminoid General: Loosely tufted perennial 50-150 cm tall with pubescent nodes and open panicles. Vegetative: Not rhizomatous perennial; stems erect, 40-90 cm tall, with 3-5 nodes, pubescent except sometimes the lower nodes are glabrous; internodes mostly glabrous; basal sheaths can be densely pilose while upper sheathes are glabrous or nearly glabrous; ligules Inflorescence: Panicles open, nodding, 10-25 cm long, branches ascending; spikelets 10-30 mm long, cylindrical to moderately laterally compressed, with 7-12 florets; glumes unequal, usually glabrous, 5-9 mm long, upper glume 3-veined; lemmas 8-11 mm long, backs and margins pubescent, apices entire, lobes shorter than 1 mm; awns 2-4 mm long, straight; anthers 2-4 mm long. Ecology: Found in a wide range of habitats from meadows to wooded areas from 2,600-8000 ft. (800-2500 m). Distribution: Found in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, and Oklahoma Notes: Is distinguished from Bromus ciliatus by its usually pubescent lemma margins and backs, while B. ciliatus has conspicuously hairy margins; B. lanatipes also has shorter awns of 2-4 mm (vs 3-5 mm) and longer anthers of 2-4 mm (vs 1 mm). Ethnobotany: Unknown Etymology: Bromus is from Greek bromo, for stinking, while lanatipa means hairy fruit stalk. Synonyms: Bromopsis lanatipes, Bromus anomalus var. lanatipes, B. porteri var. lanatipes Editor: LKearsley, 2012