New! - Search other data sources for Microstegium geniculatum

Help - Wrong Description?

Kew Data Sources

Kew's Herbarium Catalogue
ePIC - Electronic Plant Information Centre

External Data Sources

Note - this takes you off of our website
Use your browser's back button to return to this page

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.

Microstegium geniculatum

HABIT Annual; mat forming. Culms rambling; 70–150 cm long; rooting from lower nodes. Culm-nodes pubescent. Leaf-sheaths 7.5–15 cm long; glabrous on surface. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1.6 mm long. Leaf-blades linear, or lanceolate; 10–22 cm long; 6–12 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface puberulous; hairy on both sides. Leaf-blade margins scaberulous. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 3–10; digitate; 8–17 cm long. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; flattened; smooth on surface, or scabrous on surface; scaberulous on margins; glabrous on margins. Spikelet packing lax. Rhachis internodes linear; 6–7 mm long.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile and pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels linear; flattened; 3 mm long; glabrous.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 4.8 mm long; falling entire; deciduous from the base, or with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus base obtuse; attached transversely.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; coriaceous; 2-keeled; keeled obtusely; 4 -veined. Lower glume primary vein scabrous. Lower glume surface concave; glabrous. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume elliptic; 1-keeled; 3 -veined. Upper glume primary vein scabrous. Upper glume apex acute; awned; 1 -awned. Upper glume awn 1.4 mm long.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets with vestigial lower floret. Fertile lemma oblong; 0.6 mm long; hyaline; without keel; 3 -veined. Lemma apex dentate; 2 -fid; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; geniculate; 48 mm long overall; with twisted column. Palea 1.6 mm long; hyaline.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 2 mm long.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-temperate: eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: Malesia.

NOTES Andropogoneae. Gilliland 1993.

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