8 Jour., Bom. Nat. Hist. Soc, Vol. XXXIII, No. 1 [Sept 30, 1928. 



hetew-nthum. Link Hort. Berol. i, 212, Kunth I.e. 92.— P. echinatum, Willd. ex 

 Doell in Mart. Fl. Bras. II, ii, 193.— P. polystachyum, K. Schum. in Engl. Pfl. 

 Ost.— Afr. C. 103 (non aliorum). 



Description: Perennial. Culm about 60 cm. long, of which about half is rising 

 above ground, and the other half prostrate, giving off numerous short or long 

 branches, growing into secondary culms, their bases often finely filiform, all 

 many-noded and rooting from the nodes near the ground ; erect or ascending 

 portion above the last branch 5-S-noded with as many perfect leaves; internodes 

 exserted, terete, glabrous. Leaf-blades lanceolate from a shortly contracted or 

 rounded and usually slightly oblique base, acutely acuminate, from less than 

 12 mm. (lowest) to up to over 6 cm. by 4-12 mm., dark green, glabrous, with 

 scattered or very fine stiff hairs above, finely and appressedly pubescent under- 

 neath, midrib very fine, whitish or straw-coloured, lateral nerves fine, numerous, 

 crowded. Sheaths tight, terete, strongly striate, more or less appressedly 

 hairy and ciliate along the margin or only ciliate. Ligules thin, membranous, 

 rounded or truncate, ciliolate, under 2 mm. long. Inflorescence up to over 15 

 cm. long, with up to 6 or even 8 racemes, mostly much shorter and with fewer 

 racemes, occasionally reduced to a solitary raceme ; common axis subterete, 

 almost smooth, glabrous, 05 mm. in diam.; racemes appressed to the common 

 axis or obliquely spreading, the lowest up to 35 mm. long, sometimes quite 

 short ; rhachis filiform, triquetrous, minutely puberulous ; pedicels filiform, 

 angular, pruinosely scaberulous, lateral up to 2 mm. long, often much shorter. 

 Spikelets often unequally developed, the lower of each raceme or the lower 

 (secondary) of each pair often reduced in a varying degree, if perfect about 

 4 mm. long. Involucral glumes dull or brownish green ; lower oblong- to ovate- 

 lanceolate, acuminate, as long as the spikelet or shorter, glabrous or sparingly 

 and minutely scaberulous, nerves stout ; upper semi ovate in profile, acute with 

 the tip laterally compressed, armature vary variable in the same raceme, from 

 short asperities to sharply pointed hairs bent at a right angle near the base, then 

 appressed and directed forwards, or short or long (to over 1 mm.), cylindric or 

 stoutly subulate protruberances beaiing terminally at a right angle a fine very 

 sharp bristle pointing mostly forwards, outermost lateral nerves marginal. 

 Lower floral glume pale, greenish only at the tip, very delicately scaberulous, 

 hyaline basal area oblong, 1 mm. long ; upper slightly over 2 mm. long, straw- 

 coloured smooth, shining. Grain 1*6 by 0*6 mm., pale. 



Locality : Kanara : Siddhapur, evergreen forest (Talbot 1081 !). 



51. Oplismenus, P. Beauv. Fl. Owar. ii, 14 ; Stapf in Prain Fl. Trop. 



Afr. ix, 630. 



Species about fifteen, in the warmer parts of the world, but mostly tropical. 

 We retain the two species mentioned by Cooke ii, 926, 927. 



1. Oplismenus compositus, P. Beauv. Agrost. (1812), 54; Roem. & Schult. 

 Syst. ii, 484 ; Kunth Enum. i, 141 ; Aitchis. Cat. Panjab PI. 161 ; Duthie Grass. 

 N.W. Ind.81; Hook. f. F.B.I., vii, 66 ; Cke. ii, 926 ; Haines Bot. Bihar & Orissa 

 999; Stapf in Prain Fl. Trop. Afr. ix, 634. For syn. see Hook. f. and Stapf 

 11. cc. 



Description : Cke. I.e. A very variable plant. 



Locality : Khandesh : Tpranmal (McCann 9593 !) .—Konkan: At the foot of the 

 Ghats under the shade of trees (Dalzell & Gibson); Bassein (Chibber 164 !) ; 

 Kenery Caves (McCann 9445 !) ; Sion, woods (Blatter 9591 !) ; Matheran, to 

 Louisa Point (D'Almeida A244 !, Woodrow) ; Thana (Lisboa).— Deccan : 

 Igatpuri (McCann 4342 !) ; Khandala, common in forests (McCann 5335!) ; 

 Lonavla (Lisboa); Panchgani, Tiger path (Blatter & Hallberg B1253!).— 

 5. M. Country : Bidi, shade of trees (Sedgwick & Bell 2962 !) ; forests W. of 

 Dharwar (Sedgwick & Bell 1853 !) ; Castle Rock (Bhide !, McCann !) ; Londa 

 (Woodrow!).— Kanara: Yellapore (Talbot 736!); Karwar (Talbot 1322!); 

 Goond (Talbot 2204 !) ; Amshi Ghat (Talbot 2192 ;) ; Kadgal (Woodrow). 



Distribution : Throughout India, Ceylon, tropical and subtropical Asia. 

 Australia and Polynesia. 



2. Oplismenus Burmanni, P. Beauv. Agrost. (1812), 54; Rrem. & Schult. 

 Syst. II, 482; Kunth Rev. Gram, i, 44, and Enum. i, 139; Duthie Grass. 

 N. W. Ind. 8., 111. Indig. Fodd. Grass, t. 47, Fodd. Grass. N. Ind. 13 ; Hook. 



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