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.

Setaria chondrachne

HABIT Perennial; culms solitary. Rhizomes elongated; scaly. Culms geniculately ascending; 70–130 cm long; 2–3 mm diam.; 6–9 -noded. Culm-internodes 4–12 cm long; distally glabrous. Leaves cauline. Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface; outer margin hairy. Ligule a fringe of hairs; 0.5 mm long. Leaf-blades linear, or lanceolate; 6–30 cm long; 7–15 mm wide; dark green. Leaf-blade surface glabrous. Leaf-blade apex attenuate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.

Panicle open; lanceolate; 12–30 cm long; 1.5–3 cm wide; contracted about primary branches. Primary panicle branches 0.3–3 cm long; bearing spikelets almost to the base; sterile at the tips. Panicle axis angular; scabrous.

Spikelets subtended by an involucre. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Involucre composed of bristles; 4–10 mm long. Involucral bristles persistent; 1 per spikelet; flexible; antrorsely scaberulous; glabrous. Pedicels oblong.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets elliptic, or ovate; dorsally compressed; compressed slightly; 2.5–2.8 mm long; 1–1.25 mm wide; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.33–0.5 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 3 -veined. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume ovate; 0.66–0.75 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 5 -veined. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; with palea, or without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5 -veined; acute. Palea of lower sterile floret 0–0.1 length of lemma. Fertile lemma ovate; dorsally compressed; gibbous; 2.5–2.8 mm long; indurate; shiny; without keel. Lemma surface smooth. Lemma margins involute. Lemma apex acute. Palea involute; indurate.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-temperate: China and eastern Asia.

NOTES Paniceae. Koyama 1994.

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