924 Agricultural Gazette of N.S. W. [^Nov. 2, 1908. 



Botaijical l^otes. 



Useful Australian Plants. 



J. H. MAIDEN^ 



Government Botanist and Director, Botanic Gardens, Sydney. 



No. 98. Sporoboliis actinocladus, E.v.M. 



Botanical Name. — AciinocJadus, Greek, actis, actinos, a ray (of the sun), 

 a spoke of a wheel, &c. ; dados, a young branch or shoot, the panicle 

 branches being verticillate (rayed). 



Aboriginal Names. — " Katura " of the Boulia natives (Queensland) ; 

 " Coocheramunda " of the Georgina natives, Queensland (Coghlan, quoted by 

 Bailey) ; "Gnurinurn" of those about Lake Eyre, South Australia (Spencer). 

 Botanical Descri/ition (B.Fl. vii, 623). — 

 Stems 1 to 2 feet high. 



Leaves flat, tapering to fine points, glal)rous. 



Panicle pyramidal, 3 to 5 inches long, the brandies numerous, spreading, the lower 

 ones, or nearly all, verticillate at regular intervals, the upper ones scattered, all 

 capillary and shortly bare at the base, but bearing narrow, dense, spikelike 

 partial panicles of ^ to 1 inch. 

 Spikelets sessile and crowded (Nota bene !), nearly 1 line long. 



Outer glume very small, hyaline, almost obtuse ; second very acute, keeled, h to 

 f line long. 



Floicering glume similar, but longer. 



Palea divided into two from the base, even at the time of flowering. 

 Seed enclosed in a loose pericarp. 

 Note the verticillate branches of the panicle. 



Value as a Fodder. — A useful grass for the dry, hot districts of the State. 

 HnTYian Food. — Dr. Roth, late Protector of Aborigines, Northern Queens- 

 land, points out that this grass is one of those species whose seeds are used as 

 food, and gives the following account of the method of collecting and 

 preparing it : — 



The grass is cut down, tied into small bundles, taken down to the nearest waterhole, 

 and dipped under, just for a minute or two ; the bundles arc next laid out to drj- in the 

 sun for a quarter of an hour or so, but to prevent the desiccation taking place too rapidly, 

 especially on a very hot day, they may be covered over with some other grasses or bushes. 

 When the moisture has been sufficiently removed, each bundle is firmly held by the stalk 

 portion with one hand, while the head portion is gently brusjied over and squeezed with 

 the other, the seed so loosened being allowed to fall into the water contained in a wooden 

 bowl beneath. The water is drawn ofi subsetiuently by ti])ping up the vessel, and so 

 letting the fluid escape through the interdigital spaces of the hollowed hand. The seed 

 itself is then dried again before being ground and made up into a " damper.'' 



Habitat and Range. — Found in all the colonies except Western Australia,. 

 Tasmania, and Victoria. It occurs in the dry western districts of New 

 South Wales. 



The type came from Sturt's Creek, Central Australia, and was collected by 

 Mueller himself. 



Bentham also quotes : — 



Queensland. — Gracemere (O'Shanesy) ; Ballandool River (Looker). 



Central Australia. — Charlotte Waters (Giles). 



