| Note - this takes you off
of our website |
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.
Germainia capitata
HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Butt sheaths glabrous, or pubescent, or woolly. Culms erect; 30–90 cm long; 3–5 -noded. Lateral branches lacking. Ligule a ciliolate membrane; 1–1.5 mm long. Leaf-blades flat, or involute; 7–38 cm long; 3–9 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pubescent. Leaf-blade margins scabrous.
INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.
Racemes 1; single; erect; oblong; 2–3.5 cm long; bearing few fertile spikelets; bearing 3–7 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis obsolete (raceme capitate).
Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels 5–7 mm long.
STERILE SPIKELETS Basal sterile spikelets well-developed; 1–4 in number; forming an involucre about the fertile; subsessile; male; 16–23 mm long; larger than fertile. Basal sterile spikelet glumes coriaceous; glabrous, or pilose.
Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; male; oblong; dorsally compressed; 16–23 mm long; longer than fertile; persistent. Companion sterile spikelet glumes coriaceous; 7–9 -veined; glabrous, or pilose; entire, or dentate; emarginate; muticous. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 2; enclosed by glumes.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; subterete; 8–11 mm long; falling entire. Spikelet callus oblong; 1–1.3 mm long; base pungent; attached obliquely.
GLUMES Glumes similar; reaching apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume lanceolate; 8–11 mm long; 1.2 length of upper glume; 1 length of spikelet; chartaceous; without keels; 3 -veined. Lower glume apex truncate, or obtuse. Upper glume lanceolate; 7–9 mm long; chartaceous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex truncate, or obtuse.
FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret hyaline. Fertile lemma linear; hyaline; without keel; 1 -veined. Lemma apex entire; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn geniculate; 60–90 mm long overall; with twisted column. Column of lemma awn 40–60 mm long; pubescent. Palea absent or minute.
FLOWER Lodicules absent. Anthers 2.
DISTRIBUTION Asia-temperate: China. Asia-tropical: Indo-China and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia.
NOTES Andropogoneae. Chaianan.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
