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Descriptions

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

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

Echinolaena humbertiana

HABIT Perennial. Rhizomes elongated. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 25–35 cm long; without nodal roots, or rooting from lower nodes. Culm-internodes striate; distally pubescent. Leaf-sheaths loose; mostly shorter than adjacent culm internode; keeled; striately veined; outer margin hairy. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades lanceolate, or ovate; 5–6.5 cm long; 17–18 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation with 6 secondary veins. Leaf-blade surface smooth. Leaf-blade apex acute.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes; terminal and axillary. Peduncle 3–4 cm long; pilose above.

Racemes 1; single; spreading; unilateral; 3–3.5 cm long. Rhachis flattened; 5 mm wide.

Spikelets pectinate; solitary, or in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1–2 in the cluster; subequal, or the lower smaller (and often aborted).

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets elliptic; laterally compressed; 5–7 mm long; falling entire; readily shedding fertile florets. Floret callus winged; with apical wings adnate to lemma; these appendages 0.5 mm long.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume elliptic; 4.5–4.6 mm long; 0.75–0.8 length of spikelet; membranous; purple; 1-keeled; 3 -veined. Lower glume primary vein eciliate, or ciliate. Lower glume apex dentate; 2 -fid. Upper glume lanceolate, or ovate; 5 mm long; 0.8–0.9 length of spikelet; membranous; purple (at tip); 1-keeled; 5 -veined. Upper glume surface glabrous, or pubescent. Upper glume apex acuminate.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets male; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; dentate; 2–3 -fid. Fertile lemma elliptic; dorsally compressed; 4.2 mm long; indurate; without keel. Lemma margins involute. Lemma apex mucronate. Palea indurate.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: western Indian ocean.

NOTES Paniceae. Camus 2007.

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