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.

Gigantochloa hirtinoda

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms erect; 1500–2000 cm long; 60–80 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; with small lumen; 45–55 cm long; mid-green. Culm-nodes glabrous, or pubescent. Lateral branches dendroid. Culm-sheaths deciduous; 17 cm long; 3 times as long as wide; hispid; with dark brown hairs; auriculate; with obtuse auricles; with 1–2 mm high auricles; setose on shoulders; shoulders with 6–9 mm long hairs. Culm-sheath ligule ciliolate. Culm-sheath blade lanceolate; narrower than sheath; reflexed; 12.5–14.5 cm long; 20–25 mm wide. Leaf-sheaths pilose; hairs tawny; outer margin hairy. Leaf-sheath oral hairs setose; 5–7 mm long. Leaf-sheath auricles falcate; 0.5–1 mm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1 mm long. Collar with external ligule. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 17.5–32 cm long; 28–40 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous.

INFLORESCENCE Synflorescence bractiferous; clustered at the nodes; in untidy tufts; dense; 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 3 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets lanceolate; laterally compressed; 14 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating above glumes but not between florets. Rhachilla internodes suppressed between florets.

GLUMES Glumes several; 3 empty glumes; persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 2–6 mm long. Lower glume apex acuminate. Upper glume ovate; 2–6 mm long. Upper glume apex acuminate.

FLORETS Fertile florets increasing in size upwards. Fertile lemma ovate; 8–12 mm long; chartaceous; without keel. Lemma surface glabrous. Lemma apex acuminate. Palea 7–9 mm long; 2-keeled. Palea keels ciliolate. Palea apex dentate; 2 -fid. Apical sterile florets 1 in number; barren (without palea); lanceolate.

FLOWER Lodicules absent. Anthers 6; 6 mm long; yellow. Filaments united in a tube. Stigmas 1; pubescent.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Malesia.

NOTES Bambuseae. Widjaja 2002.

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