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.

Phacelurus gabonensis

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Culms erect; 150–250 cm long. Ligule a ciliolate membrane. Leaf-blades 15–40 cm long; 3–8 mm wide.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 4–14; borne along a central axis; 6–25 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 2–15 cm long. Rhachis angular; glabrous on surface; scabrous on margins. Rhachis internodes cuneate. Rhachis internode tip transverse; flat.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels linear; angular; scabrous.

STERILE SPIKELETS Companion sterile spikelets rudimentary, or well-developed; comprising 2 subequal glumes without lemmas, or containing empty lemmas, or male; dorsally compressed; shorter than fertile, or as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet glumes coriaceous; muticous, or mucronate. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 0–2; enclosed by glumes.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 4–7 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus pubescent; base truncate; attached transversely.

GLUMES Glumes dissimilar; reaching apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume lanceolate; 1 length of spikelet; coriaceous; purple; 2-keeled; wingless. Lower glume primary vein spinulose. Lower glume intercarinal veins obscure. Lower glume surface flat; muricate. Lower glume apex acute, or acuminate; muticous, or mucronate. Upper glume lanceolate; chartaceous; 1-keeled; 3 -veined.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret hyaline; 2 -veined; ciliolate on margins. Fertile lemma lanceolate; hyaline; without keel; 3 -veined. Palea hyaline.

DISTRIBUTION Africa: west tropical, west-central tropical, northeast tropical, and southern tropical.

NOTES Andropogoneae. FTA.

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