280 SOUTH INDIAN GRASSES 



short stiff awns, equal or the second a little longer, hyaline 

 glabrous, strongly keeled about Ye inch long or a little less. The 

 succeeding glumes third, fourth and fifth are very much shorter 

 than the first two glumes, about i/lo inch or less, ovate-oblong, 

 sub-acute, white, membranous with a strong greenish nerve along 

 the keel and two short ones close to the margin, paleate ; pa lea is 

 shorter than the glume, membranous, oblong-obtuse, minutely 2- 

 toothed, 2-nerved and 2-keeled. Stamens are three with small 

 anthers. Stigmas are white when young and purple when mature. 

 Lodicules are very minute. The grain is pale, brownish yellow, 

 ellipsoidal-oblong, subacute, trigonous, rough and never smooth, 

 with a shallow groove on the dorsal side ; the embryo is about 

 one-third the length of the grain. 



This grass grows abundantly in cultivated dry fields all over 

 the Presidency. The spikes when mature become very rough and 

 give an acid taste. Cattle greedily eat this grass when young, 

 but when old and in full flower some cattle do not like it so much. 



Distribution. — Throughout the Presidency in the plains. Also 

 occurs in Afghanistan and west-ward to Senegal. 



