Plants forming compact or straggling hummocks 0.15–1 m high, 0.3–2 m wide, stoloniferous. Flowering culms 0.5–1.3 m high. Leaves: sheath and orifice glabrous or woolly, sometimes with hairs extending along pseudopetiole; blade straight, folded, (2–) 5–25 cm long, 0.7 mm wide, closely nerved on lower surface, with pseudopetiole 2–4 mm long. Panicles contracted, linear, (3–) 6–13 (–16) cm long, (1–) 1.5–2.5 (–4) cm wide, with angular axis and divisions; branches to 2.5 cm long. Spikelets lanceolate, becoming cuneate or oblong, 7–18 mm long, 3–7 (–10) mm wide, (3–) 5–13-flowered; pedicel to 12 mm long; rachilla internodes 1–1.3 mm long. Glumes lanceolateelliptic-oblong to ovate or obovate (rarely elliptic-orbicular), (4–) 6–10 mm long, acuminate to obtuse or truncate, entire or emarginate, sometimes mucronulate, scarious, mostly rounded on back, 7–13-nerved, glabrous or upper part hairy. Callus acute. Basal lemma 5.5–9 mm long, bitextured; body 3–4 mm long, indurated, hairy on back, glossy-yellowish; lobes recurved, ±equal or midlobe slightly longer and narrower, scarious, mostly glabrous, purple-tipped; midlobe linear-lanceolate, 3–6 mm long; lateral lobes lanceolate-elliptic or oblong, often ciliate on inner margin. Palea to 1.5 mm longer than lemma body, abruptly bitextured with wings and top of body scarious or hyaline and remainder indurated; keels narrowly winged or wingless. Anthers 3–4.3 mm long.
Found chiefly on flat or gently sloping andundulating sites in deep, red or reddish yellow, siliceous sands and sandyloams; less commonly in shallow, rocky, pebbly or gravelly soils, clayey loamsor clayey sands, on lateritic rises and in association with limestone; also inskeletal soil on quartzite outcrops on edge of salt lakes.
Home