Chusquea cortesii

HABIT Perennial. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms scandent; 200–500 cm long; 5–10 mm diam.; woody; 10–30 -noded; rooting from lower nodes. Culm-internodes terete; solid; 12.6–28.5 cm long; mid-green and purple; mottled; distally glabrous. Culm-nodes with distinct supra-nodal ridge. Lateral branches dendroid; infravaginal; ascending. Bud complement 4–9. Branch complement many; in a horizontal line; with 1 branch dominant. Culm-sheaths deciduous but leaving a persistent girdle; 5.5–11.5 cm long; 1 times as long as wide; glabrous. Culm-sheath ligule 1–3 mm high. Culm-sheath blade triangular; erect; 1–1.3 cm long; glabrous on surface; acuminate. Leaves 3–5 per branch. Leaf-sheaths smooth, or scaberulous. Leaf-sheath oral hairs scanty, or ciliate. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1–5 mm long; truncate. Collar with external ligule. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath; petiole 0.2–0.3 cm long; petiole pubescent. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 7–17.5 cm long; 11–18 mm wide; glaucous. Leaf-blade venation without cross veins. Leaf-blade surface pubescent; hairy abaxially. Leaf-blade margins smooth, or scaberulous. Leaf-blade apex attenuate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence a panicle.

Panicle spiciform; linear, or lanceolate; 7–13 cm long. Panicle axis pubescent. Panicle branches pubescent.

Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels 0.5–3.5 mm long; pubescent.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 2 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; laterally compressed; 5.5–6.5 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.4–0.7 mm long; 10.75 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels. Lower glume surface pubescent. Upper glume ovate; 0.7–1 mm long. Upper glume surface pubescent. Upper glume apex obtuse.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets similar; barren; without significant palea; attached to and deciduous with the fertile. Lemma of lower sterile floret ovate; 2–2.2 mm long; 0.33 length of fertile lemma; chartaceous; 1–3 -veined; without lateral veins, or obscurely veined; pubescent; ciliolate on margins; mucronate, or awned. Awn of lower sterile floret 1–1.5 mm long. Lemma of upper sterile floret ovate; 2.1–2.3 mm long; chartaceous; pubescent; ciliolate on margins; awned. Awn of upper sterile floret 1.5–1.9 mm long. Fertile lemma lanceolate; 5–6 mm long; coriaceous; mid-green, or purple; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface pubescent. Lemma margins involute; covering most of palea. Lemma apex mucronate. Palea tightly convolute around flower; 5–6 mm long; 3 -veined. Palea keels contiguous above a sulcus.

FLOWER Lodicules 3; 1–2 mm long; membranous; ciliate. Ovary glabrous.

DISTRIBUTION North America: Mexico.

NOTES Bambuseae. Clark & Ruiz-Sanchez 2014.

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