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Descriptions

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

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

Chrysopogon aucheri

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Butt sheaths villous. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 30–60 cm long; wiry. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 10–25 cm long; 2–4 mm wide; glaucous. Leaf-blade surface pubescent; densely hairy. Leaf-blade margins tuberculate-ciliate. Leaf-blade apex acute, or acuminate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle with branches tipped by a raceme. Peduncle pubescent above.

Panicle open; ovate; 5–10 cm long. Primary panicle branches whorled at most nodes; simple. Panicle branches capillary; flexuous; villous (fulvously); hairy at tip.

Racemes bearing a triad of spikelets; 1 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis obsolete.

Spikelets in threes. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels linear; 0.33–0.5 length of fertile spikelet; villous; with dark brown hairs.

STERILE SPIKELETS Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; male; lanceolate; (4–)7–10 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet glumes chartaceous; awned; both glumes awned; with 4–7 mm long awn. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas enclosed by glumes; muticous.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets elliptic, or oblong; laterally compressed; 6–9.5 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus cuneate; 1–1.5 mm long; bearded; base acute. Spikelet callus hairs red; 1–2 mm long.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume oblong; 5–8 mm long; 1 length of spikelet; cartilaginous; without keels. Lower glume surface pilose; hairy at apex. Upper glume lanceolate; 1-keeled. Upper glume surface pilose; hairy at apex. Upper glume awned; 1 -awned. Upper glume awn 1.5–10 mm long; glabrous.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret lanceolate; hyaline; 2 -veined. Fertile lemma oblong; hyaline; without keel. Lemma apex dentate; 2 -fid; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; geniculate; 25–40 mm long overall; with twisted column. Column of lemma awn pubescent. Palea absent or minute.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: north and northeast tropical. Asia-temperate: western Asia and Arabia. Asia-tropical: India.

NOTES Andropogoneae. Fl Pak.

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