180 



A TEXT-BOOK OF GRASSES 



215. Axonopus Beauv. — ^By many authorities this 



group has been included in the genus Paspalum, but it 



forms a distinct natural group. Several species are 



found in tropical America but only 



2 extend as far north as the United 



States. One of these, A . compressus 



(Swartz) Beauv., is the carpet-grass 



of the Gulf States, where it is an 



important grazing-grass and also a 



lawn-grass. It is a stolonifer- 



ous perennial with flattened 



stems, comparatively short, 



broadly linear, abruptly 



pointed blades, and slender 



spikes more or less digitate or 



clustered at the summit of the 



stem. {Anastrophus Schrad.) 



216. Syntherisma Walt. — 

 This distinct group is con- 

 sidered by some to be a sec- 

 tion of Panicum. Perennial or 

 annual grasses with slender 

 mostly digitate spike - like 

 racemes. The perennial species 

 are natives of the southern 

 United States and southward 

 and are of little importance. 

 Most of the an- 

 nuals are intro- 

 duced from 

 Europe and are 

 troublesome 



Fig. 20. Syntherisma sanguinalis. Plant, XH; two , r\ ^ ^ 



views of spikelet, X5. WeeClS. UUC 



