Festuca ziganensis

HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped densely. Butt sheaths purple; persistent and investing base of culm; with soft dead sheaths, or fibrous dead sheaths. Basal innovations extravaginal. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 25–40 cm long; 2 -noded. Leaf-sheaths tubular for much of their length; with 0.75–1 of their length closed; with flat margins; without keel; puberulous. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.2 mm long. Leaf-blades straight, or curved; filiform; conduplicate; angular in section; 0.4–0.7 mm wide; stiff; glaucous. Leaf-blade venation comprising 5 vascular bundles; with 3–5 inner ridges; with 7 subepidermal sclerenchyma strands; with subepidermal sclerenchyma strands unequal in size; with subepidermal sclerenchyma free from veins; without layer of subepidermal sclerenchyma masking vein striation. Leaf-blade surface scabrous; pilose; hairy adaxially. Leaf-blade apex acute.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle. Peduncle smooth.

Panicle open; ovate; 4.5–7 cm long. Panicle branches smooth, or scaberulous; glabrous.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 5–6 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets lanceolate, or elliptic; laterally compressed; 7.8–8.4 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; 0.9 length of upper glume; chartaceous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 3.9–4.6 mm long; chartaceous; with scarious margins; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex obtuse, or acute.

FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate; 5.2–5.7 mm long; chartaceous; mid-green and purple; suffused with last colour; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface puberulous; hairy above. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 0.7–1.4 mm long overall. Palea 1 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Anthers 3. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; glabrous. Hilum linear; 0.75 length of caryopsis.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-temperate: western Asia.

NOTES Poeae. Fl Turk 1997.

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