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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.
Merostachys annulifera
HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped densely. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms erect; pendulous at the tip; 1000–1500 cm long; 10–25 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; hollow; 57–95 cm long; retrorsely scabrous. Culm-nodes swollen; black. Lateral branches dendroid. Branch complement many (20); flabellate. Culm-sheaths deciduous; 30 cm long; 3 times as long as wide; antrorsely scabrous; glabrous; setose on shoulders; shoulders with 5 mm long hairs. Culm-sheath blade lanceolate; reflexed; 14–15 cm long; 20–25 mm wide. Leaves 3–8 per branch. Leaf-sheaths tight; glabrous on surface; outer margin hairy. Leaf-sheath oral hairs setose; spreading, or curly; 10 mm long. Ligule a ciliolate membrane; 0.5 mm long. Collar with external ligule. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath; petiole 0.3 cm long; petiole pubescent. Leaf-blades oblong; 7–12 cm long; 22–35 mm wide. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.
INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.
Racemes 1; single; unilateral; 5–7 cm long; bearing 12–22 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis angular; pilose on surface; terminating in a sterile spikelet. Spikelet packing broadside to rhachis; crowded.
Spikelets pectinate; solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels ciliate.
STERILE SPIKELETS Apical sterile spikelets rudimentary.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; with a barren rhachilla extension. Spikelets elliptic; laterally compressed; 14 mm long; 2 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.
GLUMES Glumes persistent; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; 4 mm long; chartaceous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume surface puberulous. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 10 mm long; membranous; 1-keeled; 9 -veined. Upper glume surface puberulous. Upper glume apex acute.
FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate; 11 mm long; 6 mm wide; coriaceous; without keel; 15 -veined. Lemma surface puberulous. Lemma apex acute. Palea 10 mm long; coriaceous; 12 -veined. Palea keels ciliolate. Palea surface puberulous; hairy above. Rhachilla extension 10–11 mm long; pubescent.
FLOWER Lodicules 3; 2 mm long. Anthers 3; 5 mm long; purple. Stigmas 2.
FRUIT Caryopsis with free brittle pericarp.
DISTRIBUTION South America: Brazil.
NOTES Bambuseae. Sendulsky 2001.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
