Setaria palmifolia

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; robust; 75–300 cm long; 3–7(–10) mm diam. Culm-nodes pubescent. Leaf-sheaths without keel; striately veined; pilose; with tubercle-based hairs; outer margin glabrous, or hairy. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blade base tapering to the midrib. Leaf-blades linear, or elliptic; plicate; 40–80 cm long; 15–80 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface scabrous; rough on both sides; glabrous, or pubescent; hairy on both sides. Leaf-blade margins scabrous. Leaf-blade apex attenuate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.

Panicle open; lanceolate; effuse; 20–80 cm long; 2–10 cm wide. Primary panicle branches drooping; 10–30 cm long; sterile at the tips. Panicle axis scabrous. Panicle branches flexuous; pubescent in axils.

Spikelets subtended by an involucre. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Involucre composed of bristles. Involucral bristles persistent; flexible; glabrous. Pedicels reduced to a stump.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate (broadly), or elliptic, or ovate; dorsally compressed; acute; 2.5–4 mm long; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.33 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 3 -veined. Lower glume apex obtuse, or acute. Upper glume oblong; 0.66 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 5–7 -veined. Upper glume apex obtuse.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets male, or barren; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5 -veined. Palea of lower sterile floret 0.5–0.75 length of lemma. Fertile lemma elliptic; dorsally compressed; gibbous; 2.5–3.5 mm long; indurate; without keel. Lemma surface smooth, or punctate; unwrinkled. Lemma margins involute. Lemma apex acute. Palea involute; 0.75 length of lemma; hyaline, or indurate.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 0.75–1.4 mm long.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; ellipsoid.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: west tropical. Asia-temperate: China and eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: India, Indo-China, Malesia, and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia and New Zealand. Pacific: southwestern and north-central. North America: Mexico. South America: Mesoamericana, Caribbean, northern South America, western South America, and Brazil.

NOTES Paniceae. Bor 1992.

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