HOLE : SOME INDIAN GRASSES AND THEIR CECOLOGY. 51 



Primary rachis silicate, silky with long white hairs. 

 Primary branches snb-verticillate, simple or compound. 



Flowering panicle 6" — 2 feet long, conical or lanceolate to oblong, branches horizon- 

 tally spreading, or slightly ascending, usually reddish or purplish in colour, with the callus 

 hairs closely adpressed to the panicle branches. 



Fruiting panicle is woolly and silvery white with the long wide-spreading white callus 

 hairs and the panicle branches are erect or ascending. 



The horizontally-spreading callus hairs of the fruiting spikelet forms an efficient 

 parachute which aids its distribution by wind. The hairs of neighbouring spikelets becom- 

 ing entangled together, characteristic flocculent masses of several spikelets are often seen 

 being carried by the wind or hanging on the adjacent vegetation. 



Awnless, lanceolate, 0-08 to 0-2 in. long. spikelets. 



Sessile and pedicelled similar, each one-flowered and $ . 



Pedicelled fruiting spikelet falling from the pedicel, the sessile spikelet falling later 

 with the attached pedicel and joint of axis. 



Joint of axis longer or shorter than sessile spikelet, villous on margins, or on margins 

 and dorsally. 



Pedicel \ to 1\ sessile spikelet (but usually shorter than spikelet), glabrous or ciliate, 

 shorter than proper joint. 1 



Callus hairs white from 1|- to 7 times as long as sessile spikelet. 



Lanceolate, the basal third thickened becoming hard and polished in fruit and more Glume i. 

 or less brown in colour, the upper two-thirds membranous hyaline. With two lateral nerves 

 from which the margin is inflexed. Apex entire or minutely bi-dentate. Margin ciliate; 

 dorsally with the upper two-thirds minutely adpressed-pubescent. 



Broad-lanceolate, similar to I, but sub-keeled with one central nerve. Glume n. 



Apex sometimes mucronate. 



Margin inflexed and long ciliate. 



Hyaline, nerveless, shorter than II, ovate-lanceolate, long ciliate, minutely pubescent cinme in. 

 above dorsally. 



Hyaline, minute, linear, ciliate, sometimes absent. In all fresh flowering specimens Glume iv. 

 examined this glume has been found, in dry fruiting specimens the dissection of the inner 

 parts of the spikelet is somewhat difficult and it is possible that this glume is sometimes 

 overlooked. 



Ovate, minute, ciliate, often shorter than the lodicules. p a ie. 



Two, cuneate, glabrous or apex ciliate. Lodieuies. 



Three, yellow, turning brown, 0-06 to 0-09 in. long. Anthers. 



Two, purple, 0-05 in. long. stigmas _ 



1 Proper joint = joint to which the pedicel in question is attached. 



[ 51 J 



