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.

Schizostachyum kalpongianum

HABIT Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms arching; 400–500 cm long; 20–25 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; hollow; 40–45 cm long; dark green; distally pruinose. Lateral branches dendroid. Branch complement many; with subequal branches. Culm-sheaths 15–20 cm long; 2 length of internode; red; hispid; with yellow hairs, or dark brown hairs; auriculate; with 4 mm high auricles; setose on shoulders; shoulders with curved hairs. Culm-sheath ligule 2–4 mm high. Culm-sheath blade ovate; erect; 8–12 cm long; 25 mm wide; pubescent; acuminate. Leaf-sheaths pilose. Leaf-sheath oral hairs setose; pale. Leaf-sheath auricles falcate; 2 mm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 22–34 cm long; 35–50 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous.

INFLORESCENCE Synflorescence bractiferous; clustered at the nodes; in untidy tufts; open; 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 1 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets lanceolate; laterally compressed; 12–13 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.

GLUMES Glumes two; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 0.5 length of spikelet. Upper glume ovate; 0.9 length of spikelet.

FLORETS Fertile lemma ovate; 7 mm long; 4 mm wide; chartaceous; without keel. Lemma margins convolute; covering most of palea. Lemma apex acute. Palea tightly convolute around flower; 8–9 mm long; chartaceous. Palea keels contiguous above a sulcus. Palea apex ciliate.

FLOWER Lodicules 3; ovate; 3 mm long. Anthers 6; 5 mm long; anther tip smooth. Stigmas 3. Ovary with a steeple-like appendage; glabrous.

FRUIT Caryopsis with free brittle pericarp; 15–18 mm long.

DISTRIBUTION Asia-tropical: Indo-China.

NOTES Bambuseae. Kumar & Remesh 2005.

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