76 



3. Pollinia fulva, Benth. 



Botanical name. — Pollinia, in honor of Ciro Polling Professor of 

 Botany at tlie University of Verona, and author of a Flora Veronensis ; 

 fulva, Latin, deep-yellow or tawny, such being the colour of the 

 spikes. 



Synonym. — Eriantlius fulvus, Benth. : in F.v.M. Census. Variety of 

 P. Gummingii, Nees (Hackel). 



Vernacular names. — " Sugar Grass " is its most common name, owing 

 to its sweetness. " Brown-top," " Bed Grass," or " Bed-ribbed 

 Grass" allude to its rich brown-red silky spikes of flowers. It is 

 sometimes known as " Bastard Mitchell Grass " in Queensland. 

 " Aldroo " of the aborigines of Mt. Lyndhurst, South Australia (Koch). 



Botanical description (B. PL, vii, 526). — 



Stems either slender and 1 to H feet high, or stouter, more branching at the base, 



and attaining 2 to 4 feet, the nodes glabrous, or shortly bearded. 

 Leaves rather narrow, tapering to fine points, the orifice of the sheaths and ligula 



usually ciliate, and sometimes the sheaths hairy. 

 Spikes two or three, sessile, and near together in a terminal cluster, but not quite 



digitate, 1£ to 2^ inches long, covered with silky hairs of a rich brown. 

 Spikelets mostly about 2 lines long, but variable in size, all similar or the pedicellate 



ones rather narrower. 

 Outer glume truncate, or denticulate at the end, faintly nerved. 

 Second nearly as long, narrower, slightly keeled, truncate. 

 Third very minute, or more frequently entirely deficient. 

 Awn or terminal glume slender, rarely \ inch long, contracted into a flexuose stipes, 



or slightly dilated at the base, hyaline and bifid. 

 Styles very shortly united. 



Value as a fodder. — A showy, moderately tall grass, very abundant 

 in some places. It is very nutritious and palatable to stock. A 

 correspondent of Mr. Bailey says : " It is much more drought resisting 

 than the Mitchell Grass, and springs up more quickly after rain." 

 O'Shanesy speaks of it as a valuable grass for pastures. 



Habitat and range. — Found in all the colonies except Tasmania. In 

 this Colony extending from the table-lands to the western districts. 



29. ANDBOPOGON. 



Spikelets one-flowered or empty, in pairs in the alternate notches of 

 the articulate rhachis of simple spikes, one sessile hermaphrodite (or 

 rarely female) and fertile, the other pedicellate and barren, either male 

 or empty, the spikes either solitary or clustered- and sessile, or very 

 shortly pedunculate at the end of the common peduncle. 



Glumes in the fertile spikelet four, the outer one the largest, awn- 

 less, several-nerved, but often two nerves near the margin much more 

 prominent than the others ; second glume keeled, rarely produced 

 into a short straight awn ; third much smaller, very thin and hyaline, 

 always empty; fourth or terminal glume under the flower, very 

 slender, flexuose, and stipes-like at the base, or if dilated very thin 

 and hyaline, entire or bifid at the top, with an awn either terminal or 

 from the notch, rigid and twisted in the lower part, bent back and 

 very fine above the middle. 



Palea small and hyaline or none. 



