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SOUTH INDIAN GRASSES 



Pappophorum elegans, Noes 



This grass is perennial with wiry roots. Stems are erect 

 ascending from a swollen woody base, thinly hairy and rarely 

 glabrous, pale green and sometimes with red blotches, wiry, vary- 

 ing in length from I to 3 feet. 



The lea/sheath is thinly pubescent, some hairs being minutely 

 gland-tipped. 



The leaf-blade is narrow, linear-lanceolate, sharply acuminate, 

 covered both above and below with hairs, many of which being 

 minutely gland-tipped, convolute when young. The ligule is a 

 ridge of hairs. Nodes are pubescent. 



The inflorescence is a panicle with short branches, I to 3 inches 

 long, rachis is pubescent; peduncle is 2 to 4 inches long, pubes- 

 cent. The spikelets are pale green, sometimes purple tinged and 



V>lii////A 



, mm ft i 



FlG. 216.- Pappophorum elegans. 



1 and 2. The first and scond glumes; 3. the third glume and its palea; 4. palea 

 of the third glume ; 5. lodicules, stamens and ovary ; 6 and 7. fourth glume and its 

 palea ; 8 and 9. fifth glume and its palea ; 10 and II. sixih and seventh glumes. 



appearing white when mature, softly pubescent, about % inch long 

 including the awn ; the rachilla is produced and disarticulates 

 above the two lower glumes. 



There are 6 or 7 glumes in thespikelet. The first glume is lanceo- 

 late, acute, softly hairy, usually 9-nerved. or varying from 7 to 12 

 (some nerves do not reach the apex), about *4 inch long. The second 

 glume is similar to the first but a little longer and both the glumes 

 have broad hyaline margins. The third glume is broadly orbicular, 

 concave, subchartaceous, 9-nerved, densely villous and with a tuft 

 of hairs at the base where it joins the rachilla, cleft into 9 awn- 

 like lobes, bisexual and paleate ; the awns are alternately long and 

 short, subulate, plumose in the lower half and scabrid above, the 

 palea is oblong-ovate, subchartaceous, with two pubescent keels, 

 bifid at the apex, and with 3 purple anthers. The ovary is ovoid 

 or ovoid-oblong, with two white stigmas. Lodicules are two, small 

 cuneate or quadrate. Grain ovoid or ovoid-oblong. The fourth 



