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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.
Melocalamus blaoensis
HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms scandent; curved; 1500–2000 cm long; 10–15 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; 35–40 cm long; distally hispid. Lateral branches dendroid. Branch complement several; with 1 branch dominant. Culm-sheaths 13–15 cm long; 1.5–2 times as long as wide; purple; convex at apex; auriculate; with 405 mm high auricles; with 15–20 mm wide auricles. Culm-sheath blade triangular; narrower than sheath; reflexed; 11–13 cm long; 25–30 mm wide. Leaves 4 per branch. Leaf-sheaths outer margin hairy. Leaf-sheath oral hairs ciliate. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath; petiole 0.2 cm long; petiole pubescent. Leaf-blades lanceolate, or elliptic; 16–17 cm long; 15–80 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation with 10–12 secondary veins. Leaf-blade apex attenuate.
INFLORESCENCE Synflorescence bractiferous; clustered at the nodes; in globose clusters; dense; glabrous on internodes; with glumaceous subtending bracts; with axillary buds at base of spikelet; prophyllate below lateral spikelets; leafless between clusters.
Fertile spikelets sessile.
FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 2 fertile florets; with a barren rhachilla extension. Spikelets obovate; laterally compressed; obtuse; 2.5–3 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating above glumes but not between florets. Rhachilla internodes suppressed between florets.
GLUMES Glumes several; 2–3 empty glumes; persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Upper glume oblate; 1.8–2 mm long; 0.8 length of adjacent fertile lemma; chartaceous; without keels; 5 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins prominent. Upper glume surface pilose. Upper glume apex obtuse.
FLORETS Fertile lemma oblate; 2–2.5 mm long; chartaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface pubescent. Lemma apex obtuse. Palea tightly convolute around flower; 2–2.2 mm long. Palea surface pubescent; hairy on flanks.
FLOWER Lodicules 3; 1.5–1.8 mm long; ciliate. Anthers 6; 2 mm long. Stigmas 3.
FRUIT Caryopsis with fleshy pericarp; orbicular; isodiametric.
DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Indo-China.
NOTES Bambuseae. Nguyen & Tran 2011.
Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.
