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Descriptions

W.D. Clayton, M. Vorontsova, K.T. Harman & H. Williamson

© Copyright The Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Thaumastochloa rariflora

HABIT Annual. Culms 10–60 cm long; (4–)8–12 -noded. Leaf-sheaths pilose. Ligule a ciliolate membrane. Leaf-blades flat, or involute; 2–10 cm long; 2–4 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pilose.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes; terminal and axillary; deciduous as a whole; subtended by a spatheole; embraced at base by subtending leaf. Spatheole linear. Peduncle straight, or nodding; 0.5–3 cm long; retrorsely scabrous above; glabrous; widened at apex; disarticulating; disarticulating below uppermost sheaths.

Racemes 1; single; unilateral; 0.35–0.9 cm long; bearing few fertile spikelets; bearing 1 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis tough; subcylindrical and excavated; 0.7–1 mm wide; glabrous on surface; terminating in a sterile spikelet. Spikelet packing abaxial. Rhachis internodes oblong; 2.5–3 mm long. Rhachis internode tip transverse; crateriform.

Spikelets sunken; in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels fused to internode; united wholly.

STERILE SPIKELETS Companion sterile spikelets represented by barren pedicels.

Apical sterile spikelets rudimentary.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets ovate; dorsally compressed; 2–3 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus glabrous; base truncate; attached transversely.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 1 length of spikelet; indurate; 2-keeled; keeled laterally; 9 -veined. Lower glume surface concave; smooth. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume elliptic; coriaceous; with hyaline margins; without keels.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret hyaline. Fertile lemma hyaline; without keel; 0–3 -veined. Palea hyaline.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 0.5–0.8 mm long.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Papuasia. Australasia: Australia.

NOTES Andropogoneae. Koning.

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