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Descriptions

W.D. Clayton, M. Vorontsova, K.T. Harman & H. Williamson

© Copyright The Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Hordeum spontaneum

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 35–70 cm long. Leaf-sheath oral hairs lacking. Leaf-sheath auricles falcate. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades 5–16 cm long; 4–8 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface smooth, or scabrous.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 1; single; linear; bilateral; 4–9 cm long; 6–8 mm wide. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; flattened; ciliate on margins. Spikelet packing broadside to rhachis. Rhachis internodes oblong; 3.5–5 mm long; falling with spikelet above.

Spikelets in threes. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets sessile; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels oblong.

STERILE SPIKELETS Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; containing empty lemmas, or male; lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 4–6 mm long; shorter than fertile; deciduous with the fertile. Companion sterile spikelet glumes subulate. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 1; 7–9 mm long; muticous.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; with a barren rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 12–14 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.

GLUMES Glumes collateral; similar. Lower glume linear, or lanceolate; 4–6 mm long; 1 length of upper glume. Lower glume surface pubescent. Lower glume apex awned; 1 -awned. Lower glume awn 10–15 mm long. Upper glume linear, or lanceolate; 4–6 mm long. Upper glume surface pubescent. Upper glume awned; 1 -awned. Upper glume awn 10–15 mm long.

FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate, or ovate; 12–14 mm long; coriaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 40–140 mm long overall; limb scabrous.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 2.5–3 mm long. Ovary pubescent on apex.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; sulcate on hilar side; hairy at apex. Hilum linear.

DISTRIBUTION Europe: southeastern. Africa: north. Asia-temperate: Soviet Middle Asia, Caucasus, western Asia, Arabia, and China. Asia-tropical: India.

NOTES Triticeae. Fl Turk 1993.

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