145 



69. TKIRAPHIS. 



Spihelets several-flowered, in a terminal panicle, the rhachis of the 

 spikelet articulate above each glume, the terminal glume usually empty 

 or with a male flower. 



Outer empty glumes unawned, entire or the second occasionally 

 notched with a short point in the notch. 



Flowering glumes with three narrow lobes tapering into straight 

 awns, the central occasionally with a short lobe or point on each side, 

 or all three reduced to small teeth. 



Palea narrow. 



Styles distinct. 



Grain enclosed in the thin or coriaceous glume and palea, free from 

 them. 



Panicle soft and dense ; flowering glumes hairy, with a pointed 



lobe or short awn on each side of the central awn ... 1. T. mollis. 



Panicle very loose ; flowering glumes coriaceous, with three 



small teeth or points 5. T. microdon. 



1. Triraphis mollis, E.Br. 



Botanical name. — Triraphis, Greek treis, three, raphis a needle, in 

 allusion to the three awns of the flowering glumes which are needle- 

 like ; mollis, Latin, soft, in allusion to the soft, silky feel of the panicle. 



Where figured. — Agricultural Gazette. 



Botanical description (B. Fl. vii, 603). — A glabrous, rather slender, 



erect grass attaining 2 feet, but sometimes much smaller. 



Leaves long and narrow ending in fine points. 



Panicle narrow, dense, 6 to 10 inches long, with a soft look owing to the slender awns 

 and hairs of the glumes. 



Spihelets crowded on the short erect branches, narrow, about \ inch long without the 

 awns, with 8 to 10 or even more flowers. 



Glumes narrow, membranous, about 1 J lines long, the two outer empty ones glabrous, 

 entire or the second with a short tooth on each side of the point. 



Flowering glumes sprinkled with a few long hairs, the central capillary awn three to 

 four lines long, with a pointed lobe or short awn on each side, the lateral awns 

 rather shorter. 



Value as a fodder. — Inferior for this purpose, and only eaten when 

 better grasses are scarce. 



Other uses. — The long dense panicle possesses such a handsome 

 appearance as to place this plant within the category of ornamental 

 grasses. 



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

 An interior species. 



5. Triraphis microdon, Benth. 



Botanical name. — Microdon, Greek, micros, small, odous, odontos a 

 tooth, the three principal nerves of the flowering glume being produced 

 into short terminal points or small teeth. 



Synonym. — Triodia microdon, F. v. M., in Census. There seems 

 little doubt that this species should be referred to Triodia rather than 



