Digitaria montana

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Butt sheaths villous. Culms geniculately ascending; 30–60 cm long. Culm-nodes glabrous. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades 5–9 cm long; 2–4 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 2–5; digitate; unilateral; 4–9 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 0.5–2 cm long. Rhachis angular.

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

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate, or elliptic; dorsally compressed; acute; 1.2–1.8 mm long; with hairs extending 0.5–1 mm beyond apex; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.5 mm long; 0.1 length of spikelet; membranous; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse, or acute. Upper glume elliptic; 3.5 mm long; 0.8–0.9 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume surface pubescent. Upper glume margins ciliate. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5 -veined; pubescent; ciliate on margins; acute. Fertile lemma lanceolate, or elliptic; 3.5 mm long; cartilaginous; much thinner on margins; yellow; without keel. Lemma margins flat; covering most of palea. Lemma apex acute. Palea cartilaginous.

FLOWER Anthers 3.

DISTRIBUTION Pacific: southwestern.

NOTES Paniceae. Henrard 1993.

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