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.

Paspalum burmanii

HABIT Perennial. Rhizomes elongated; woody; scaly. Culms erect; robust; 150–200 cm long; woody. Culm-internodes terete; hollow; 7–18 cm long; smooth; distally glabrous. Culm-nodes brown; pubescent. Lateral branches lacking. Leaves mostly basal. Leaf-sheaths 15–22 cm long; longer than adjacent culm internode; pilose; with tubercle-based hairs; outer margin hairy. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1.8–2.3 mm long; brown. Collar pubescent. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 30–35 cm long; 10–12 mm wide. Leaf-blade midrib conspicuous. Leaf-blade surface pubescent; densely hairy; hairy on both sides. Leaf-blade margins ciliate. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes. Peduncle pubescent above.

Racemes 7–11; borne along a central axis; ascending; unilateral; 6–9 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 10–18 cm long; flattened; glabrous. Rhachis broadly winged; 2.8–3 mm wide; glabrous on surface; scaberulous on margins; terminating in a barren extension. Spikelet packing 4 -rowed. Raceme-bases pubescent.

Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels scabrous.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets elliptic; dorsally compressed; plano-convex; acute; 3–4 mm long; 1.2–1.5 mm wide; falling entire.

GLUMES Glumes one the lower absent or obscure; reaching apex of florets; thinner than fertile lemma. Upper glume elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; with cartilaginous margins (corky); without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume margins tuberculate; ciliate. Upper glume hairs white; 1–2 mm long. Upper glume apex acute.

FLORETS Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret similar to upper glume; elliptic; 3.2–3.7 mm long; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5 -veined; sulcate; scaberulous; acute. Fertile lemma elliptic; gibbous; 2.8–3 mm long; 0.6–0.8 mm wide; cartilaginous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface pilose (sparsely). Lemma margins involute. Palea gaping; involute; cartilaginous; 2 -veined.

FLOWER Lodicules 2; 0.2 mm long. Anthers 3; 1.8–2 mm long.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; obovoid; 1.3–1.5 mm long; light brown. Embryo 0.5 length of caryopsis. Hilum punctiform.

DISTRIBUTION South America: Brazil.

NOTES Paniceae. Filgeiras et al 2001.

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