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GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora
Descriptions
W.D. Clayton, M. Vorontsova, K.T. Harman & H. Williamson
© Copyright The Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Festuca liviensis
HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped densely. Butt sheaths persistent and investing base of culm; with compacted dead sheaths. Basal innovations intravaginal. Culms 35–45 cm long. Culm-internodes smooth, or scaberulous; distally glabrous. Leaf-sheaths open for most of their length; with 0.25–0.33 of their length closed; with flat margins; glabrous on surface. Leaf-sheath auricles erect; obtuse. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.5 mm long. Leaf-blades filiform; conduplicate; circular in section; 0.6–0.95 mm wide; glaucous; pruinose. Leaf-blade venation comprising 7–9 vascular bundles; with 1 inner ridges; with subepidermal sclerenchyma free from veins; with sclerenchyma strands widened to form a discontinuous subepidermal layer, or with continuous uniform subepidermal sclerenchyma layer on the underside. Leaf-blade surface smooth. Leaf-blade apex obtuse.
INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.
Panicle open; dense; 4.5–8 cm long. Panicle branches scaberulous.
Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 4–5 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 7–8 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 oblong; 3.6–4.6 mm long; 0.7–0.8 length of adjacent fertile lemma; chartaceous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins prominent. Upper glume apex acute.
FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate, or oblong; 4.5–6.5 mm long; chartaceous; glaucous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface scabrous; rough above. Lemma margins ciliate. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 1.2–2 mm long overall; 0.25–0.33 length of lemma. 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: southwestern.
NOTES Poeae. Fl Eur 1995.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
