New! - Search other data sources for Vulpia cynosuroides

Help - Wrong Description?

Kew Data Sources

Kew's Herbarium Catalogue
ePIC - Electronic Plant Information Centre

External Data Sources

Note - this takes you off of our website
Use your browser's back button to return to this page

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.

Vulpia cynosuroides

HABIT Annual; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 3–20 cm long. Culm-internodes smooth; distally glabrous. Leaf-sheaths without keel; smooth; glabrous on surface. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1–2 mm long; truncate, or obtuse. Leaf-blades involute; 2–4.5 cm long; 1 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface puberulous; hairy adaxially. Leaf-blade apex abruptly acute.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 1; single; oblong, or ovate; unilateral; 1–3 cm long. Rhachis glabrous on surface to pubescent on surface.

Spikelets solitary, or in pairs. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels oblong; 1–2 mm long; glabrous, or puberulous.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 3–9 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets obovate, or cuneate; laterally compressed; 6–8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes eventually visible between lemmas; scaberulous.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet; similar to fertile lemma in texture. Lower glume ovate; 0.1–1.1 mm long; 0.02–0.25 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse, or acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 4.5 mm long; 0.9–1 length of adjacent fertile lemma; coriaceous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex obtuse, or acute.

FLORETS Fertile florets divergent. Fertile lemma lanceolate; 4.5–5 mm long; chartaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 2–3 mm long overall. Palea 1 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Palea keels scaberulous. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Lodicules 2; 0.5 mm long. Anthers 1; 0.4–0.9 mm long. Ovary glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; linear; 2.5–3 mm long; glabrous. Embryo 0.2 length of caryopsis. Hilum linear; 0.33 length of caryopsis.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: north.

NOTES Poeae. Fl Afr N 1997.

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