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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.
Vulpia membranacea
HABIT Annual; culms solitary, or caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; slender; 10–60 cm long; 2–3 -noded. Leaf-sheaths without keel; smooth; glabrous on surface. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.2 mm long. Leaf-blades flat, or involute; 1–10 cm long; 1–3 mm wide; firm, or flaccid. Leaf-blade surface ribbed; puberulous; hairy adaxially.
INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle; exserted.
Panicle contracted; oblong; secund; 2–12 cm long. Primary panicle branches appressed; indistinct the panicle almost racemose, or simple. Panicle branches angular; scaberulous.
Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels linear; 3–7 mm long; scaberulous; tip widened.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 2–3 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong, or cuneate; laterally compressed; 9–15 mm long; falling entire, or breaking up at maturity; deciduous with the pedicel (if entire); disarticulating or below each fertile floret (if fragile). Rhachilla internodes eventually visible between lemmas; smooth. Floret callus glabrous.
GLUMES Glumes persistent; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 0.2–3 mm long; 0.02–0.2 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels; 0–1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 8–14 mm long; 0.9–1.2 length of adjacent fertile lemma; chartaceous; with membranous margins; 1-keeled; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Upper glume awn 4–6 mm long.
FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate; 7–15 mm long; chartaceous; keeled; 3–5 -veined. Lemma surface scaberulous. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 10–25 mm long overall. Palea 2 -veined. Apical sterile florets 3–4 in number; barren; in a clump; linear; 2–4 mm long. Apical sterile lemmas awned; 1 -awned. Apical sterile lemma awns 6–16 mm long.
FLOWER Anthers 1–3; 0.6–0.9 mm long. Ovary glabrous.
FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; linear; glabrous. Hilum linear; 1 length of caryopsis.
DISTRIBUTION Europe: southwestern. Africa: north and Macaronesia. Asia-temperate: Caucasus and western Asia.
NOTES Poeae. Fl Eur 1997.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
