LIBRARY 



NEW YORK 



BOT A V IC AL J59 GRAMINEM. [84. Rottboellia. 



3. 0. monostachyus, Pre<sZ. 



Slender 1-2 ft. high, leafless upwards. Leaves linear. 1-4" long by 

 •16" or less, flat, hairy, margins smooth, ligule villous.' Spikes very 

 few solitary terminal and 1-2 axillary, very slender, 1-5-3" long, 

 •05—06" diam. ending in a filiform tip marked with scars. Spikelets 

 •1—12" long, rather shorter than or as long as or slightly exceeding 

 the joint, aperture with a thickened margin. Glume i oblong suddenly 

 acute, smooth or with a few minute pits near base, a distinct transverse 

 furrow between glume and callus. 



Santal Parg-., Kurz, MokUn ! Hazaribagh, Clarkel Fl. Oct. Annual 

 Much resembling at first sight Mnedthea Icevis, under which all the Calcutta 

 Herbarium specimens are included, but easily recognized from that plant by the 

 hairy leaves and alternate (opening) spikelets. i j' i' c 



84. ROTTBOELLIA, L. f. 



Tall grasses, usually branched upwards, often with stilt roots from 

 the lowest nodes. Leaves large, flat, broadly linear, ligules short 

 membranous. Spikes few or many, cylindric and glabrous, sub- 

 solitary racemose or laxly panicled, with very fragile (articulate) 

 rhachis, the mternodes cupular at the tip and excavate on one side. 

 Spikelets 2-nate, usually heteromorphous, sessile and pedicelled' 

 almost flush with the spike (fitting into the excavate rhachis) before 

 opening, sessile 2-fld., pedicelled often imperfect, male or neuter, the 

 pedicel flattened more or less adnate to the internode, but superficially 

 distinct, the spikelet overlapping the node next above. Uppermost 

 pairs both similar and barren and finally forming a tapering appen- 

 dage to the spike. Sessile spkt. with narrow callus adnate to the 

 bases of the internode and pedicel into a glabrous ring with a knob 

 an the centre which fits into the hollow of the next lower internode. 

 Gls. 4, 1 coriaceous, flat or nearly so with very narrow inflexed mar<^ins, 

 2-keeled upwards, obtuse or subobtuse ; ii boat-shajied thinner, acute ' 

 iij hyaline, male; iv hyaline 2-sexual, 3 -nerved ; palea as lon^^ 

 2-nerved ; lodicules 2, cuneate. St. 3. Grain broad-oblon^^ or ellip^ 

 sold, dorsally compressed. Pedicelled spkt. with 2 male flowers or 

 reduced. 



1. R. exaltata, L. f. 



A very large stout grass with polished stems -3-4" diam. standintr 

 on stiff adventitious stilt-roots. Leaves up to 4-5 ft. long by 1^2" 

 broad, flat, hispidly hairy above or glabrescent leaving minute tubercle- 

 bases, margins spinulose-scabrid. Spikes terete 3-4" long, finally 

 long-peduncled, each peduncle with its OAvn proper very narrow 

 spathiform leaf-sheath, diam. of spike -05-1" before divergence of 

 gl. 1. Gl. i of sessile spkt. nearly flat, •15-22" pale diverging in flower, 

 oblong obtuse sometimes very narrowly winged towards the apex' 

 nervation obscure, pitted between base and callus. Gl. i of pedicelled 

 spikelet •15-2" long, green, many -nerved, Avith white scabrid margins, 

 acuminate with the acumen more or less 2-fid. Pedicel pale flat 

 shorter than spkts., distinct or free along its margins. ' 



08 1059 



