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Descriptions

W.D. Clayton, M. Vorontsova, K.T. Harman & H. Williamson

© Copyright The Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Arthraxon prionodes

HABIT Perennial; mat forming. Rhizomes short; knotty; scaly (silky); hairy. Culms rambling; 30–60 cm long; wiry. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blade base amplexicaul. Leaf-blades lanceolate, or ovate; 2–7 cm long; 4–20 mm wide. Leaf-blade margins tuberculate-ciliate. Leaf-blade apex attenuate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 2–8; digitate; 4–7 cm long. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; ciliate on margins. Rhachis hairs 1–2 mm long. Rhachis internodes linear; 3–6 mm long.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels filiform; 3–6 mm long; ciliate.

STERILE SPIKELETS Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; lanceolate; 4–5 mm long; shorter than fertile.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets linear to lanceolate; laterally compressed; 5–6.5 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus pubescent; base truncate; attached transversely.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume lanceolate; 1 length of spikelet; chartaceous; 2-keeled. Lower glume primary vein pectinately spinose. Lower glume surface convex. Upper glume lanceolate; chartaceous; 1-keeled; keeled above. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret oblong; hyaline; 2 -veined; obtuse. Fertile lemma lanceolate; hyaline; without keel; 1 -veined. Lemma apex acute; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn dorsal; arising 0.2 way up back of lemma; geniculate; 8–15 mm long overall; with twisted column. Column of lemma awn glabrous. Palea absent or minute.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 2.5–3.5 mm long.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: northeast tropical and east tropical. Asia-temperate: western Asia, Arabia, and China. Asia-tropical: India, Indo-China, and Malesia.

NOTES Andropogoneae. FTEA.

Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.