Digitaria effusa

HABIT Perennial. Cataphylls evident. Culms decumbent; 25–35 cm long; rooting from lower nodes. Culm-nodes glabrous. Leaf-sheaths pilose; outer margin hairy. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1 mm long; erose. Leaf-blades 4–8 cm long; 6–8 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation with 7 secondary veins. Leaf-blade surface pilose. Leaf-blade margins smooth; ciliate; hairy at base. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 4–8; digitate; unilateral; 3–5 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 1–3 cm long; glabrous. Rhachis angular; glabrous on surface; scaberulous on margins.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels scaberulous; ciliate; hairy on margins; tip discoid.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate, or elliptic; dorsally compressed; acute; 1.8–2 mm long; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes two; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 0.25–0.3 mm long; 0.15 length of spikelet; hyaline; without keels; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse, or acute. Upper glume elliptic; 1.4–1.5 mm long; 0.75–0.8 length of spikelet; membranous; 3 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins without cross-veins. Upper glume surface glabrous. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 7 -veined; with equidistant veins; without cross-veins; glabrous; acute. Fertile lemma elliptic; 1.8–2 mm long; cartilaginous; much thinner on margins; pallid, or yellow; shiny; without keel. Lemma surface smooth. Lemma margins flat; covering most of palea. Lemma apex apiculate. Palea cartilaginous.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 0.9 mm long.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Indo-China.

NOTES Paniceae. Veldkamp 2002.

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