Jepson Flora Project: Jepson Interchange |
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TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993) |
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Jepson Interchange (more information) |
©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California
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AND IS MAINTAINED FOR ARCHIVAL PURPOSES ONLY |
Annual to bamboo-like; roots generally fibrous
Stem generally round, hollow; nodes swollen, solid
Leaves alternate, 2-ranked, generally linear; sheath generally open; ligule membranous or hairy, at blade base
Inflorescence various (of generally many spikelets)
Spikelet: glumes generally 2; florets (lemma, palea, flower) 1many; lemma generally membranous, sometimes glume-like; palea generally ± transparent, ± enclosed by lemma
Flower generally bisexual, minute; stamens generally 3; stigmas generally 2, generally plumose
Fruit: achene-like grain
Genera in family: 650900 genera; ± 10,000 species: worldwide; greatest economic importance of any family (wheat, rice, maize, millet, sorghum, sugar cane, forage crops, ornamental, weeds; thatching, weaving, building materials)
Reference: [Hitchcock 1951 Manual grasses US, USDA Misc Publ 200; Clayton & Renvoise 1986 Kew Bull Add Series 13]
See Glossary p. 26 for illustrations of general family characteristics. Generally wind-pollinated.
Species in genus: 1 sp
Etymology: (Greek: to tie grapevines together, from early use of leaves)
Introduced |
Perennial
Stems clumped, < 3 m; solid in X -section
Leaf: blade < 1 m, ± 7 mm wide; ligule membranous, ciliate; blade margins serrate, tip long tapered
Inflorescence: panicle-like, ± 1-sided, 26 dm, terminal, dense; branches slender, drooping
Spikelet bisexual, 1016 mm; glumes membranous, acuminate, 35-veined; axis breaking apart above glumes and between florets; florets 26; callus long-hairy; lemma back rounded, tip 2-toothed, long-hairy near base, 57-veined, short-awned at tip between teeth; palea veins extending as 2 short-awns
Ecology: Oak woodland
Elevation: < 1000 m.
Bioregional distribution: Outer North Coast Ranges (Napa Co.)
Distribution outside California: native to Mediterranean
Reference: [Decker 1964 Brittonia 16:7679]
Cult as ornamental.