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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.
Pennisetum bambusiforme
HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; robust; 600–800 cm long; 10–20 mm diam.; rooting from lower nodes. Culm-internodes hollow; distally glabrous. Lateral branches ample. Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface, or pilose. Ligule a ciliate membrane; 1–4 mm long. Leaf-blade base with a false petiole. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 20–40 cm long; 20–50 mm wide.
INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle; terminal and axillary.
Panicle spiciform; linear, or oblong; flexuous; 6–10 cm long; 1–2 cm wide. Primary panicle branches accrescent to a central axis; with lateral stumps on axis. Panicle axis angular; scabrous; bearing deciduous spikelet clusters.
Spikelets subtended by an involucre. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Involucre composed of bristles; oblong; base obtuse; base 0.3 mm long; base pubescent. Involucral bristles deciduous with the fertile spikelets; numerous; with an outer whorl of thinner bristles; 40 in principal whorl; inner bristles longer than outer; 16–18 mm long; terete; flexible; antrorsely scaberulous; glabrous.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets ovate; dorsally compressed; acute; 3.9–5.2 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.
GLUMES Glumes shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate, or orbicular; 0.4 mm long; 0.1 length of spikelet; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse. Upper glume ovate; 1–2 mm long; 0.15–0.4 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex acute, or caudate.
FLORETS Basal sterile florets male; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5–6 -veined; caudate. Palea of lower sterile floret 0.66 length of lemma. Fertile lemma ovate; 3–4.2 mm long; chartaceous; without keel. Lemma surface scaberulous. Lemma margins flat. Lemma apex acute. Palea chartaceous.
FLOWER Lodicules absent. Anthers 3; 1.5–2 mm long.
DISTRIBUTION North America: Mexico. South America: Mesoamericana, northern South America, western South America, and southern South America.
NOTES Paniceae. Fl Meso-Amer 2004.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
