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Descriptions

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

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

Festuca aloha

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Cataphylls evident. Butt sheaths persistent and investing base of culm; with fibrous dead sheaths. Basal innovations extravaginal. Culms erect; slender; 45–70 cm long; 1 mm diam.; 2–3 -noded. Culm-internodes smooth; distally glabrous. Leaf-sheaths open for most of their length; longer than adjacent culm internode. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1–1.5 mm long; brown; erose; obtuse. Leaf-blades erect, or drooping; 22–33 cm long; (1–)1.5–1.7 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation comprising 13–20 vascular bundles; with sclerenchyma strands below veins. Leaf-blade surface ribbed; grooved adaxially; puberulous; hairy adaxially.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle; comprising 34–66 fertile spikelets.

Panicle contracted; oblong; loose; straight; 8–11 cm long; 2.5–4 cm wide. Primary panicle branches appressed, or ascending; 2(–3) -nate; 4–6 cm long; with lower 0.5 length of panicle.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels (1–)1.5–3.5(–5) mm long.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 4–6 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets lanceolate; laterally compressed; 8.2–13 mm long; 3.5–6 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes 0.8–1.2 mm long; scaberulous. Floret callus obtuse.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; (3.6–)3.9–4.2(–4.5) mm long; 0.75 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; 5.2–5.5(–6) mm long; 0.75–0.9 length of adjacent fertile lemma; membranous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Fertile lemma lanceolate; 5.8–8 mm long; chartaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface scaberulous; rough above. Lemma apex acuminate; mucronate, or awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 0.5–1.1 mm long overall. Palea keels scabrous. Palea surface scabrous. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 3.1–4.2 mm long. Ovary pubescent on apex.

DISTRIBUTION Pacific: north-central.

NOTES Poeae. Catalan et al 2011.

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