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Descriptions

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

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

Festuca halleri

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Butt sheaths persistent and investing base of culm. Basal innovations intravaginal. Culms 6–15 cm long. Leaf-sheaths tubular for much of their length; with 1 of their length closed; with flat margins; glabrous on surface, or pubescent. Leaf-sheath auricles erect. Ligule a ciliolate membrane; 0.5 mm long. Leaf-blades filiform; conduplicate; 0.5–0.7 mm wide; glaucous; pruinose. Leaf-blade venation comprising 7 vascular bundles; with 1–3 inner ridges; with 3 subepidermal sclerenchyma strands; with subepidermal sclerenchyma free from veins; without layer of subepidermal sclerenchyma masking vein striation. Leaf-blade surface smooth.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.

Panicle open; dense; 1–3 cm long. Primary panicle branches simple; bearing 1–2 fertile spikelets on each lower branch. Panicle branches glabrous, or puberulous.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 4–5 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 6–7.6 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes obscured by lemmas.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; chartaceous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 3.4–5.1 mm long; 0.9 length of adjacent fertile lemma; chartaceous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Fertile lemma oblong; 3.7–5.7 mm long; chartaceous; purple; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 2–5 mm long overall. Palea 2 -veined. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Lodicules 2. Anthers 3. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; ellipsoid. Hilum linear. Disseminule comprising a caryopsis and palea.

DISTRIBUTION Europe: central, southwestern, and southeastern.

NOTES Poeae. Fl Eur 1995.

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