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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.
Gigantochloa tomentosa
HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms erect; 1000–1500 cm long; 60–80 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; hollow; 35–45 cm long; mid-green; distally glabrous, or pubescent (brown hairs). Culm-nodes pubescent. Lateral branches dendroid. Culm-sheaths deciduous; hispid; with dark brown hairs; auriculate; with obtuse auricles; with 2 mm high auricles; glabrous on shoulders. Culm-sheath ligule 0.5–1 mm high; entire. Culm-sheath blade triangular; narrower than sheath; spreading; pubescent. Leaf-sheaths pilose; hairs tawny. Leaf-sheath oral hairs lacking. Leaf-sheath auricles falcate; 1 mm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1 mm long. Collar with external ligule. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 9–18 cm long; 12–22 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface pubescent; hairy abaxially.
INFLORESCENCE Synflorescence bractiferous; clustered at the nodes; in stellate clusters, or untidy tufts; dense; with glumaceous subtending bracts; with axillary buds at base of spikelet; prophyllate below lateral spikelets; leafless between clusters.
Fertile spikelets sessile.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 4 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets lanceolate; laterally compressed; 12–30 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating above glumes but not between florets. Rhachilla internodes suppressed between florets. Floret callus pubescent.
GLUMES Glumes several; 4 empty glumes; persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 4 mm long. Lower glume margins ciliate. Lower glume hairs dark brown. Lower glume apex acuminate; mucronate. Upper glume ovate; 10 mm long. Upper glume margins ciliate. Upper glume hairs dark brown. Upper glume apex acuminate; mucronate.
FLORETS Fertile florets increasing in size upwards. Fertile lemma ovate; 14–18 mm long; chartaceous; without keel. Lemma surface puberulous; hairy above. Lemma apex acuminate. Palea 9–15 mm long; 2-keeled. Palea keels ciliolate. Palea apex dentate; 2 -fid. Apical sterile florets 1 in number; barren (without palea); lanceolate.
FLOWER Lodicules absent. Anthers 6; 6–9 mm long; red. Filaments united in a tube. Stigmas 1; pubescent.
FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp.
DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Malesia.
NOTES Bambuseae. Widjaja 2002.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
