GENERA OF GRASSES OF THE UNITED STATES. 209 



spikelet terete, angled at maturity: glumes wanting; lemma charta- 

 ceous, 3-nerved, tapering into a long slender awn; palea 2-nerved, 

 closely clasped by the lemma; grain cylindric, as much as 2 cm. long.. 

 Tall annual or perennial aquatic grasses, with flat blades and large 

 terminal panicles, the lower branches spreading, bearing the pendu- 

 lous staminate spikelets, the upper branches ascending, at maturity 

 erect, bearing appressed pistillate spikelets, the staminate spikelets 

 early deciduous, the pistillate spikelets tardily deciduous. Species 

 three, one in eastern Asia, two in North America. 



Type species: Zissania aquatica L. 



Zizania L., Sp. PI. 991, 1753 ; Gen. PI., ed. 5 r 427. 1754. Linnaeus describes 

 two species, Z. aquatica and Z. terrcstris. The citation in the Genera Plantarum 

 is to Gronovius. " Zizania Gron. virg. 189 " is given as a synonym by Linnaeus 

 under Z. aquatica; hence the latter is the type species. The second species, from 

 Malabar, does not belong to Zizania. The director of the Kew Royal Botanic 

 (jraraens states that the plate upon which it is based (Rheede, Hort. Malab. 12: 

 pi. 60) represents Scleria elata Thwaltes. 



Fartis Adans., Fam. PI. 2: 37, 557. 1763. Based on Zizania L., which was 

 not Zizania of the ancients. 



Hydropyrum Link, Hort. Berol. 1: 252. 1827. A single species, H. esculen- 

 tum, based on Zizania palustris L., is included. 



Melinum Link, Handbuch Erkenn. Gewachse 1 : 96. 1829. A single species, 

 M. palustre, based on Zizania palustris L., is included. 



Ceratochaete Lunell, Amer. Midi. Nat. 4: 214. 1915. A new name proposed 

 for Zizania L., "not Zizanion of the New Testament," which is the tares of 

 Scripture. 



Zizania palustris L. (PI. XVI; fig. 125), Indian or wild rice, is an 

 annual marsh grass growing in the Eastern and Northern States, 

 often over extensive areas. The seeds were used by the aborigines for 

 food and are still used to some extent by some of the northern 

 tribes of Indians. Wild rice is important as a food and shelter for 

 water birds. It is sometimes planted for this purpose in marshes on 

 game preserves. Zizania aquatica L. differs in having narrower 

 blades, shorter culms, and less spreading panicles. This form, found 

 from Maine to Minnesota, may be a variety rather than a distinct 

 species. 1 At first Linnaeus did not distinguish between the narrow- 

 leaved and broad-leaved forms, but based the name aquatica on a 

 specimen 2 of the narrow-leaved form. Later (1771) he described the 

 broad-leaved form as Zizania palustris. The Asiatic Z. latifolia 

 Turcz. is a perennial with rhizomes and stolons. 



106. LUZIOLA Juss. 



Spikelets unisexual, 1-flowered, disarticulating from the pedicel, 

 the staminate and pistillate flowers in separate panicles on the same 

 plant ; first glume and palea wanting ; second glume and lemma about 

 equal, thin, several to many nerved, lanceolate or oblong; stamens 

 several ( " 6 to 18 " ) ; stigmas long, plumose ; grain free, globose, 

 smooth. 



l See Smiths. Misc. Coll. 68 12 : 35. 1918. 



2 See Hitchcock, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 12: 124. 1908, 



97769 19 Bull. 772 14 



