298 GRASSES OF BRITAIN. 



LoLiuM PERENNE (variety) italicum. 



Italian Rye-Grass. 



Plate CXXXVIII. 



In page 142 I gave a short notice of this grass, and to prevent its 

 being confounded with other varieties, I have here given a more 

 detailed description of the same plant, accompanied with a figure of 

 natural size. 



It is distinguished in the spikelets, (the terminal one excepted,) 

 having but one glume, and that considerably shorter than its spike- 

 let. The florets furnished with long awns. 



Description, — Root biennial, fibrous, producing many stems from 

 two to five feet in length. Stems erect, striated, hollow, more or less 

 rough to the touch, especially when felt from below upwards, bearing 

 four or five leaves with roughish sheaths, upper sheath longer than 

 its leaf. Ligule of upper sheath obtuse, very short, about one-fourth 

 as long as broad. Joints usually four, the uppermost remote. Leaves 

 lanceolate, flat, acute, rough on the inner surface, smooth behind. 

 Infiorescence spiked. SpU from five to eight inches in length, 

 bearing from fourteen to twenty spikelets. Bacliis wavy, grooved, 

 rough on the angles. Spikelets (except the uppermost one) com- 

 posed of one glume and from seven to eleven awned florets, the ter- 

 minal spikelet having always two glumes of nearly equal lengths. 

 Glume of a linear-lanceolate form, (Fig. 2), nearly flat, situated on the 

 outer side of the florets, smooth, mostly five-ribbed, equal in length to 

 the lowermost floret ; the glumes on the upper part of the spike rather 

 shorter. Florets of two palese ; the outer palea of lowermost floret of 

 an oblong-lanceolate form, five-ribbed ; the marginal ribs the most 

 distinct. Inner palea about equal in length to the outer, with two 

 green ribs minutely toothed. Arvn rough, arising from a little below 

 the membranous summit of the outer palea ; of various lengths, the 

 awn of the lowermost floret of the terminal spikelet longer than its 

 floret ; — whereas the awn of the lowermost floret on the lower spike- 

 lets is always shorter than the floret ; the awn of the second floret 

 is generally equal in length to its floret. Styles two, short. Stigmas 

 Lolium Bouchianvm, Kunth, Koch. Lolium multijlorum, Babington. 



