New! - Search other data sources for Brachiaria mesocoma

Help - Wrong Description?

Kew Data Sources

Kew's Herbarium Catalogue
ePIC - Electronic Plant Information Centre

External Data Sources

Note - this takes you off of our website
Use your browser's back button to return to this page

GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora

Descriptions

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

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

Brachiaria mesocoma

HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped loosely. Culms geniculately ascending, or decumbent; 30–100 cm long; woody. Culm-internodes glaucous. Culm-nodes swollen. Lateral branches ample. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades flat, or involute; 3–12 cm long; 3–8 mm wide; glaucous. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pubescent. Leaf-blade apex attenuate; callose.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 5–6; borne along a central axis; unilateral; 1–3 cm long; with branchlets at base of longer racemes. Central inflorescence axis 7–15 cm long. Rhachis wingless; angular. Spikelet packing adaxial; lax; irregular.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels filiform; glabrous, or ciliate; tip discoid.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets ovate; dorsally compressed; compressed slightly; acute; 7 mm long; 2–3 mm wide; falling entire. Rhachilla internodes elongated between glumes. Rhachilla elongation 0.8–1.5 mm long.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; reaching apex of florets; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 1 length of spikelet; hyaline; pallid; without keels; 1–5 -veined. Lower glume surface villous; hairy at base. Lower glume margins ciliolate. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 5–7 -veined. Upper glume surface with a transverse fringe of hair. Upper glume margins ciliolate. Upper glume apex acuminate, or rostrate.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets male; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret similar to upper glume; ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5 -veined; sulcate; with dorsal tufts of hair; 2 hair tufts in all; ciliolate on margins; acute, or acuminate. Fertile lemma elliptic; 3 mm long; indurate; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma margins involute. Lemma apex obtuse. Palea involute; indurate; without keels.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 2 mm long.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: southern tropical and south.

NOTES Paniceae. FTA.

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