i 5 6 



SOUTH INDIAN GRASSES 



Ischaemum pilosum, Hack. 



It is a tall, robust, perennial grass with rhizomes producing 

 numerous creeping stolons densely covered with scaly-sheaths. 

 The aerial stems are erect, freely branching at the base, slender, 

 2 to 3 feet long, glabrous. 



The lea/sheath is glabrous. The ligule is a distinct glabrous 

 membrane, V% inch long, rounded. Nodes are glabrous. 



The leaf-blade is linear, finely acuminate, glabrous but bearded 

 at the base, 6 to 12 inches long and % to % inch broad. 



The inflorescence consists of two to six softly hairy spikes which 

 are yellow or brown 1 to 4 inches long. Joints and pedicels are 

 slender, sparsely ciliate. 



The sessile spikelets are narrowly lanceolate, % inch long, with 

 long hairs at the base. The first glume is dorsally hairy, or 

 glabrous, narrowed from the middle upwards, chartaceous, with 

 incurved margins and six or seven anastomosing nerves. The second 

 glume is longer than the first, laterally compressed, ovate-lanceo- 

 late, acuminate, chartaceous, glabrous but often with long hairs on 

 the keel towards the upper half, 5-nerved, the lateral nerves 



Fig. 134. — Ischsemum pilosum. 



I. A sessile and a pedicelled spikelet ; 2, 3, 4 and 6. the first, second, third and the 

 fourth glume, respectively, of the sessile spikelets ; 5. palea of the third glume, 7. palea 

 of the fourth glume ; 8. ovary ; 9, 10, 11 and 12. first, second, third and the fourth 

 glume, respectively, of the pedicelled spikelets ; 13. palea of the fourth glume. 



anastomosing. The third glume is a little shorter than the second, 

 linear-oblong or lanceolate, paleate ; palea is membranous, nerve- 

 less, and encloses three stamens. The fourth glume is equal to the 

 third glume in length, membranous, hyaline and divided almost to 

 the middle into two acute lobes with an awn V\ to % inch long, 

 paleate ; palea is lanceolate, nerveless and encloses three stamens 

 and the ovary and sometimes only the ovary. The pedicelled 



