/OYSlh.-h 



133 



Tragas raeemosus, Scop. 



This plant is a perennial with tufted prostrate 01 erect stems, 

 rooting at the nodes freely and densely leafy. The flowering 

 branches are erect or geniculately ascending and varies from a 

 few inches to about a foot. 



The leaf-sheath is short, pale, glabrous, somewhat compressed, 

 striate, equitant below and upper are longer, terete and green. 

 The ligule is only a ridge of short, fine hairs. Nodes are glabrous. 



The leaf-blade is convolute when young, ovate or ovate-lanceo- 

 late, variable from y A to 2 inches long and t/io to Ve, inch wide, 

 acuminate, flat or somewhat wavy, glabrous on both the surfaces, 

 rigidly pungent, densely crowded and distichously imbricate in 

 the lower part of the stem, base is amplexicaui, and the margin is 

 distantly serrate and rigidly ciliate. 



The inflorescence is a spike-like terminal panicle varying in 

 length from V\ to 2 inches; the rachis is wavy, slender, angular or 

 grooved, pubescent, the peduncle is striate, pubescent and enclosed 

 by the leaf-sheath. 



The spikelets are arranged in groups of two, facing each other and 

 appearing like a single spikelet with two equal echinate glumes, 

 sessile, or obscurely pedicelled on very short, tumid, pubescent 

 branches. 



U---4 



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ty 



I' [G. 123. Tragus raremosus. 



r. A pair of spikelets ; i, 3 and 4. I he first, second and the third glume, respective!) 

 5. palea of the third glume : 6. ovary, anthers and lodicnles. 



There are two (rarely three) glumes in the spikelet. The first 

 glume is very minute, hyaline, obtuse and it is very often not 

 present. The second glume is about % inch, ovate-lanceolate, 

 acuminate, strongly 3-ribbed with rows of stout, spreading hooked 

 spines along the ribs and encloses a single floret. The margins 

 of this glume are membranous and somewhat scaberulous. The 

 third glume is about 1/12 inch, oblong lanceolate, membranous 

 minutely hairy, 3-nerved and finely pointed at the apex ; the palea 

 is as long as the glume, hyaline, 2-nerved, lanceolate, subacute and 

 irregularly toothed at the apex. Stamens are three, with slender 



