Elegant Aira

Family Lamiaceae. Occurs on sandy, rocky and shallow-soil slopes (open and overgrown with shrubs or sparse woodland) in Southern Europe, North Africa and Western Asia, in southern Crimea and the Transcaucasus.

Annual plants 8-45 cm tall. Panicles 3-10 cm long, widely spreading, with very thin, widely splayed branches bearing small (0.1-0.2 cm long) silvery spikelets on stalks 0.3-1.2 cm long; the lower floral scale of the upper flower in the spikelet with an awn, of the lower flower without an awn. 2n=14. Flowers in late spring to early summer.