Chusquea simpliciflora

HABIT Perennial; culms solitary. Rhizomes elongated; pachymorph. Culms scandent; 1000–2500 cm long; 5–10 mm diam.; woody; without nodal roots. Culm-internodes terete; solid; smooth, or antrorsely scabrous. Lateral branches dendroid; extravaginal. Branch complement many; in a clump; with 1 branch dominant; thinner than stem. Culm-sheaths purple; glabrous; without auricles. Culm-sheath blade linear; 2 cm long. Leaves 3–5 per branch. Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface, or puberulous; outer margin hairy. Leaf-sheath oral hairs ciliate. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.5–1 mm long. Collar with external ligule. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath; petiole 0.1 cm long. Leaf-blades deciduous at the ligule; lanceolate; 5.5–9 cm long; 8–14 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation comprising 6 vascular bundles (primary). Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pubescent; sparsely hairy.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes bearing few fertile spikelets; 2–4 fertile spikelets on each.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels 1–4.5 mm long.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 2 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets ovate; laterally compressed; 7.7–10.5 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.2 mm long; 0.5 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume ovate; 0.3–0.5 mm long; 0.05 length of adjacent fertile lemma; without keels; 0 -veined. Upper glume primary vein absent. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets similar; barren; without significant palea; attached to and deciduous with the fertile. Lemma of lower sterile floret ovate; 4.6–5 mm long; chartaceous; 1–3 -veined; without lateral veins, or obscurely veined; glabrous, or puberulous; hairy at base; acute. Lemma of upper sterile floret ovate; 4.9–6.2 mm long; chartaceous; glabrous, or pubescent (at base); acute. Fertile lemma ovate; 8–9.7 mm long; coriaceous; without keel; 5–7 -veined. Lemma apex acute. Palea 5–10 mm long; 5 -veined. Palea keels approximate. Palea apex dentate; 2 -fid.

FLOWER Lodicules 3; membranous; veined; ciliate. Anthers 3. Stigmas 2.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; apex unappendaged.

DISTRIBUTION North America: Mexico. South America: Mesoamericana and western South America.

NOTES Bambuseae. Fl Costaric 1994.

ADDITIONAL CHARACTERS Hair tufts under leaf base on both sides of midrib.

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