Digitaria diagonalis

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Butt sheaths pubescent; persistent and investing base of culm; with fibrous dead sheaths. Culms erect; 40–300 cm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades 10–60 cm long; 1–12 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or hirsute.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes few, or numerous; 4–50; borne along a central axis; spreading, or ascending; unilateral; 3–25 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 5–40 cm long. Rhachis angular; glabrous on margins, or setose on margins.

Spikelets in pairs, or clustered at each node. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 2–6 in the cluster. Pedicels setose; hairy at tip.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets elliptic, or oblong; dorsally compressed; 1.2–2.5 mm long; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes one the lower absent or obscure; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Upper glume oblate; 0.1–0.7 mm long; 0.1–0.33 length of spikelet; hyaline; 0 -veined. Upper glume primary vein absent. Upper glume apex truncate.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret oblong; 0.8–1 length of spikelet; membranous; 3(–7) -veined; glabrous; obtuse. Fertile lemma elliptic; 1.2–2.5 mm long; cartilaginous; much thinner on margins; dark brown; without keel. Lemma margins flat; covering most of palea. Lemma apex acute. Palea cartilaginous.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: west tropical, west-central tropical, northeast tropical, east tropical, southern tropical, and south. Asia-temperate: Arabia.

NOTES Paniceae. FTEA.

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