

PLATE 457. 



v 



FKSTUCA SCABHA, Yahl. (Fl. Cap., Vol. ATI., p . 7^9). 

 Xat. Order Graminefe. 



DKKCIOUS, compactly caspitose ; innovation shoots intravaginal. OLMS erect, 



J to .') feet long, rather robust, smooth, very rarely scaberulous, 1-2-noded, uppermost 

 internode long exserted. 



LEAVES crowded at the base ; basal sheaths broad, firm, open to the base, breaking 

 ii]) at length and forming dense tight coats of fibres, smooth ; upper sheaths rather 

 tight, gradually longer, striate, smooth, rarely soabrid to very scabrid ; li<mles ovate 

 obtuse, ii]> to 1| line long ; blades convolute in bud, then open or involute when dry, 

 linear, acute, 3 to 8 inches by 1 J to 3 lines, firm, usually rather rigid, !) to 13-nerved. 

 smooth below, scabrid above or rarely very scabrid all over, nerves prominent on the 

 upper side. 



PANICLE very narrow, dense, often spike-like, sometimes interrupted, straight or 

 slightly nodding, 3 to <S inches long ; rhachis terete, striate and smooth below, angular 

 and scabrid to hispidulous above ; branches 2-nate or solitary, sparingly to abundantly 

 and very closely divided from the base or rarely undivided for a few lines ; branchlefs 

 and pedicels very short, scabrid. 



Si'iKEi.ETs densely crowded, oblong, 4-5 lines long, green, often tinged with 

 purple, or glaucescent, closely 4 to 6-flowered ; florets unisexual with the rudiments 

 of the other sex. 



GU'MES unequal to subequal, linear-lanceolate in profile, acute to subobtuse, 

 iirmlv herbaceous except at the hyaline, margins, smooth or scaberulous, hirer usually 

 shorter, lj to "2^ lines long, 1 -nerved, tipper If to 3 lines long, 3-nerved. Valves 

 oblong, acute or subacute, sometimes mucronulate, 2f to 3J lines long, scaberulous at 

 least in the upper part, distinctly 5-nerved. Pales minutely 2 -toothed or entire, keels 

 stout, scabrid ; lodicules ovate, acute. Anthers 1 J line long, on fine long filaments in 

 the male, very minute and empty and on very short delicate filaments in the female. 

 Ovary ohm-old, very densely villous from the middle upwards, with rather short 

 loosely plumose stigmas in the female, quite rudimentary in the male ; grain oblong, 

 dorsal'ly compressed, subconcave in front, ~1\ lines long ; embryo short ; hilum filiform, 

 : , ! lo \ the length of the grain. 



Habitat : XATAL. Near Newcastle, 4000 feet alt., B-uchctnnn 185. 



As no specimen of this grass was in our collection, the Director of Kew Gardens 

 and Herbarium very kindly lent us two specimens, one being from Natal, _ the other 

 a Cape specimen ; as the Xatal specimen was male only, from these two conjointly the 

 drawing and dissections were made. 



Fig 1, Lower -lump : 2, upper gltimc : 3, valre ; 4, pale ; 5, pistil, stamen* and lodicules 

 from female plant ; 6, same, from male plant. All enlarged. 



