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Descriptions

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

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

Digitaria milanjiana

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes elongated. Stolons absent, or present. Butt sheaths herbaceous; not bulbous, or thickened and forming a bulb (rarely); glabrous, or pubescent. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending, or decumbent; 20–250 cm long; without nodal roots, or rooting from lower nodes. Culm-nodes glabrous. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades 15–30 cm long; 3–13 mm wide.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 2–18; digitate; straight; unilateral; 5–25 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 0–6 cm long. Rhachis narrowly winged; angular; glabrous on surface, or with scattered hairs.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels unequal.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; (1.7–)2.5–3(–3.5) mm long; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes two; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.2–0.5 mm long; 0.1 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse. Upper glume lanceolate; 0.33–0.66 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume surface glabrous, or pubescent. Upper glume margins ciliate. Upper glume hairs dark brown, or purple. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret lanceolate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 7 -veined; scabrous; rough on veins; glabrous, or pubescent, or setose (sometimes); ciliate on margins; bearing yellow hairs, or dark brown hairs, or purple hairs; acute. Fertile lemma elliptic; 1.7–3.5 mm long; cartilaginous; much thinner on margins; grey, or light brown; without keel. Lemma margins flat; covering most of palea. Lemma apex acute. Palea cartilaginous.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: west-central tropical, northeast tropical, east tropical, southern tropical, and south. Asia-tropical: Malesia and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia.

NOTES Paniceae. FTEA.

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