Festuca toca

HABIT Perennial; culms solitary, or caespitose; clumped loosely. Cataphylls evident. Rhizomes short; fleshy; not obviously scaly. Basal innovations extravaginal, or intravaginal. Culms erect; slender; straight; 50–90 cm long; 2–4 -noded; without nodal roots. Culm-internodes terete. Culm-nodes without exudate; glabrous. Lateral branches lacking. Leaves basal and cauline; 2–4 per branch. Leaf-sheaths tight; unthickened at base; open for most of their length; without keel; striately veined. Leaf-sheath auricles absent. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.1–0.5 mm long; membranous; white; entire; truncate. Leaf-blade base symmetrical. Leaf-blades straight; conduplicate; angular in section, or elliptic in section; 10–35 cm long; 0.5–1.1 mm wide; firm; mid-green, or glaucous. Leaf-blade midrib indistinct. Leaf-blade venation indistinct; with subepidermal sclerenchyma strands similar in size; with subepidermal sclerenchyma attached to veins above and below; with continuous uniform subepidermal sclerenchyma layer on the underside. Leaf-blade surface glabrous. Leaf-blade margins smooth; glabrous. Leaf-blade apex obtuse.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle; with 1 peduncles per sheath. Peduncle terete; eglandular; glabrous.

Panicle contracted; linear, or lanceolate; continuous; dense; straight; 6–20 cm long; 0.5 cm wide; bearing many spikelets; contracted about primary branches. Panicle branches scabrous.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 4–6 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 6–8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Spikelet callus glabrous. Rhachilla internodes smooth; glabrous. Floret callus glabrous.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; similar; subequal in width; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; 2–3 mm long; 0.66–0.75 length of upper glume; chartaceous; purple; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume surface asperulous; rough at apex. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 3–4 mm long; 0.75 length of adjacent fertile lemma; chartaceous; dark green, or purple; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume surface asperulous; rough at apex. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate; symmetrical; 4–5 mm long; chartaceous; pallid, or mid-green, or purple; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface scaberulous; rough above. Lemma apex muticous, or mucronate. Principal lemma awn 0–0.5 mm long overall. Palea 2 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Palea surface papillose. Palea apex ciliate. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Lodicules 2. Anthers 3; 1.1–1.6 mm long. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; lanceolate. Hilum linear; 0.6 length of caryopsis.

DISTRIBUTION South America: western South America.

NOTES Poeae. Stancik 2005.

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