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.

Parahyparrhenia bellariensis

HABIT Caespitose. Culms erect; 60–90 cm long. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades filiform; convolute; 7–20 cm long; 1–3 mm wide.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes; subtended by a spatheole; enclosed. Spatheole linear; 8–9 cm long; herbaceous.

Racemes 1; single; 5–6 cm long; bearing few fertile spikelets; bearing 9–12 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; flattened; ciliate on margins. Rhachis internodes filiform. Rhachis internode tip oblique; flat.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels filiform; flattened; ciliate.

STERILE SPIKELETS Basal sterile spikelets well-developed; 4–6 in number; male; lanceolate; equalling fertile. Basal sterile spikelet lower glume muticous; lemmas awnless.

Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; male; lanceolate; 8 mm long; longer than fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet callus square; obtuse. Companion sterile spikelet glumes coriaceous; 7 -veined; muticous.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; subterete; 8–9 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus cuneate; 1–1.5 mm long; pilose; base acute; attached obliquely. Spikelet callus hairs white.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; coriaceous; without keels; keel-less except near apex. Lower glume surface with a longitudinal median groove. Lower glume apex dentate; 2 -fid. Upper glume lanceolate; coriaceous. Upper glume margins ciliolate. Upper glume muticous.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret lanceolate; hyaline. Fertile lemma linear; 3 mm long; chartaceous; without keel; 1 -veined. Lemma apex dentate; 2 -fid; incised 0.1 of lemma length; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; geniculate; 25–40 mm long overall; with twisted column. Column of lemma awn hirsute; hairy on the spiral; with 1–1.5 mm long hairs. Palea absent or minute.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: India.

NOTES Andropogoneae. WDC.

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