Festuca alpina
{{Short description|Species of plant}}
{{Speciesbox
|genus = Festuca
|species = alpina
|authority = Suter
|synonyms = {{species list
|Festuca alpina var. gaucheri |(St.-Yves) Kerguélen, (1975)
|Festuca alpina subsp. riverae |Chas, Kerguélen & Plonka, (1993)
|Festuca alpina var. subviolacea |Ducommun, (1869)
|Festuca alpina var. suteri |St.-Yves, Litard., (1922)
|Festuca alpina var. viridis |Ducommun, (1869)
|Festuca ovina subsp. alpina |(Suter) W.D.J.Koch, (1838)
|Festuca ovina var. suteri |St.-Yves, (1922)
|Festuca malyi |Widder, God. Biol. Inst. Sarajevu (1953)
|Festuca micevskiana |Kostad., Godišen Zborn., (2005)
|Festuca ovina subvar. gaucheri |(St.-Yves) St.-Yves, (1923)
|Festuca ovina var. gaucheri |St.-Yves,(1922)
|Poa ovina var. alpina |(Suter) Wimm. & Grab., (1827)}}
}}
Festuca alpina, also known as the alphine fescue, is a species of grass in the genus Festuca.{{cite web |title=Festuca alpina Suter |url=http://www.worldfloraonline.org/taxon/wfo-0000869714 |website=www.worldfloraonline.org |access-date=20 August 2022}} It grows in rocky habitats in many of the mountain chains across Europe,{{cite journal |last1=Foggi |first1=Bruno |last2=Parolo |first2=Gilberto |last3=Šmarda |first3=Petr |title=Revision of the Festuca alpina group ( Festuca section Festuca , Poaceae) in Europe: Festuca alpina in Europe |journal=Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society |date=December 2012 |volume=170 |issue=4 |pages=618–639 |doi=10.1111/j.1095-8339.2012.01313.x |url=https://academic.oup.com/botlinnean/article/170/4/618/2416159 |access-date=19 August 2022|url-access=subscription }} in the countries of Austria, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Yugoslavia.{{cite web |title=Festuca alpina Suter |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:402324-1#distributions |website=Plants of the World Online |access-date=19 August 2022 |language=en}}
When regarded as an aggregate group, the Festuca alpina group includes a number of other taxa, with Festuca alfrediana as the most notable.
Characteristics
= Leaves =
Festuca alpina can grow up to 6 to 20 centimetres high. Its leaves are curled into bristles, are less than 0.5 millimetres wide, and have a green hue. Leaf sheaths of non-flowering shoots are closed to about the middle.
= Flowers =
Ligules are less than 0.5 millimetres long, its panicles are 1.5 to 3 centimetres long, and its spikelets are 6 centimetres long in a pale green hue. Lemmas are about 3.5 to 4.2 millimetres in length, with awns about 3 to 4 millimetres long. Its anthers are between 0.8 and 1.5 millimetres in length (rarely up to 2mm), while its ovaries are glabrous. Flowering period: July to August.{{cite web |title=Festuca alpina Suter |url=https://www.infoflora.ch/en/flora/festuca-alpina.html |website=Info Flora |access-date=16 January 2023}}