Festuca georgii

HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped loosely. Basal innovations extravaginal. Culms erect; 50–70 cm long. Culm-internodes distally glabrous. Lateral branches lacking. Leaf-sheaths open for most of their length; with 0.5 of their length closed; glabrous on surface. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.5 mm long. Leaf-blades filiform; conduplicate; angular in section; 15–30 cm long; 0.7–0.9 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation comprising 7–9 vascular bundles; with 5 inner ridges; with sclerenchyma strands below veins and above some veins; with 7 subepidermal sclerenchyma strands; with subepidermal sclerenchyma attached to veins below; without layer of subepidermal sclerenchyma masking vein striation. Leaf-blade apex acute.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.

Panicle contracted; lanceolate, or oblong; 5.5–9 cm long. Panicle branches flat; scabrous.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 4–5 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets ovate; laterally compressed; 5.5–7.5 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; chartaceous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate, or ovate; chartaceous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate; 4–4.6 mm long; chartaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma apex acute; muticous. Palea 2 -veined. Palea keels smooth. Apical sterile florets distinct from fertile; with internodes 2.5–3.2 mm long between them.

FLOWER Lodicules 2. Anthers 3. Ovary with a few apical hairs.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp. Hilum linear.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-temperate: China.

NOTES Poeae. Alexeev 2001.

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