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.

Dinochloa acutiflora

HABIT Perennial; caespitose; clumped loosely. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms scandent; zigzag; 20–50 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; hollow; 40–50 cm long; smooth; distally glabrous. Lateral branches dendroid. Branch complement several. Culm-sheaths deciduous but leaving a persistent girdle; 10–12 cm long; 2 times as long as wide; green; smooth; pubescent; hairy at the base; with tawny hairs; truncate at apex; setose on shoulders; shoulders with curved hairs; shoulders with 8–10 mm long hairs. Culm-sheath ligule 1 mm high; entire. Culm-sheath blade ovate; narrower than sheath; erect; 10–12 cm long; 45–80 mm wide; pubescent (at base). Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface, or pubescent; hairs tawny; outer margin glabrous, or hairy. Leaf-sheath oral hairs setose; deciduous. Leaf-sheath auricles falcate. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 15–25 cm long; 15–25 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pubescent; hairy abaxially. Leaf-blade margins spinulose.

INFLORESCENCE Synflorescence bractiferous; clustered at the nodes; in untidy tufts; glabrous on internodes, or pubescent on internodes; with glumaceous subtending bracts; with axillary buds at base of spikelet; prophyllate below lateral spikelets; with 1-keeled prophylls; leafless between clusters; 6–10 cm long overall.

Fertile spikelets sessile.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; laterally compressed; acute; 7–9 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes comprising 1 gemmiferous bracts; 2 empty glumes; persistent; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 1.5 mm long; 7 -veined. Lower glume apex acuminate. Upper glume ovate; 3–4 mm long; 9–11 -veined. Upper glume apex acuminate.

FLORETS Fertile lemma ovate; 5 mm long; 2 mm wide; coriaceous; without keel; 9 -veined. Lemma apex acuminate. Palea 5 mm long; coriaceous; 4 -veined; 2-keeled.

FLOWER Lodicules 3; 0.5–1 mm long; ciliate. Anthers 6; anther tip apiculate. Stigmas 3. Styles 5 mm long. Ovary umbonate.

FRUIT Caryopsis with fleshy pericarp; oblong; 8–10 mm long; rugose. Endosperm evanescent.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Malesia.

NOTES Bambuseae. Dransfield 1997.

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