PLATE 500. 



IscH.^EMUM Franks^, J. M. Wood. (Kew Bulletin, 1908, ined.) 

 Nat. Order Graminea;. 



Compactly caispitose, intravaginal innovation shoots and flowering culms closely 

 congested, covered at the base after fires with the old persistent hardened sheaths. 



Culms slender, 8 inches high, 1 to 3-noded, glabrous except the upper internode 

 which is pilose below the inflorescence with white or grey hairs. Lower sheaths of 

 the leaves laterally compressed, keeled, hard, pilose, at length glabrescent, those of the 

 culms rather more lax, upper narrower, becoming purple, pubescent, often longer than 

 the interncdes ; ligules reduced to a ring of hairs ; blade setaceously filiform, acute, 

 laterally compressed, in transverse section semi-oblong, plane on the face, or those of 

 the culms subchannelled, those of the innovation shoots 8 inches (or more) long, J 

 line broad {i.e., as compressed , bright green, smooth, glabrous, or near the base 

 pilose. Racemes becoming purple, 2-3, erect, 10 lines to 2J inches long, shortly 

 peduncled, peduncles ashy grey, pilose, bearded at the base, sometimes supported by 

 subulate bracts, up to 5 lines or more long ; joints clavate, triquetrous, Avhite pilose 

 on the outer side, 2 to 3 lines long. 



Sessile spikelets oblong-lanceolate, acute, 3 to 4 lines long ; loicer glume white 

 bearded at base, chartaceous, dorsally flattened, mostly rough tuberculate on the keels 

 and intracarinal nerves, the tubercles on the keels bearing 1-2 white, short, rigid hairs, 

 nerves seen from the front green, 8-9, including the keels ; upper glume boat-shaped, 

 equalling the lower one, membranaceous, 5-nei-ved, the boat-shaped keel rigidly ciliate, 

 margins ciliolate ; lower floret male, valve oblong- lanceolate, 2^ to 3 lines long, 

 hyaline, becoming purple, 3 -nerved, minutely scabrous on the back, ciliolate, pale 

 2-nerved, hyaline, subequalling the valve ; upper floret perfect, valve at apex minutely 

 tridentate, the middle tooth mucronulate, otherwise similar, to the lower floret. 

 Anther 2 lines long. 



Pedicelled spikelet on clavate outwardly pilose pedicels 3 lines long, supported 

 by the sessile, similar except that the glumes have but 3 intracarinal nerves, and the 

 valve of the upper floret which is male or hermaphrodite is scarcely tridentate. 



Eabitat : Natal. Tabamhlope, 6000-8000 feet alt., J. Wylie (in Herbarium, 

 Wood 10,540), October, 1907.. 



Of this grass we ha\-e but ie^y specimens, and all of the one gathering ; they 

 had been growing amongst grass which had recently been burned off, so the length of 

 leaves and culms must for the present remain doubtful. This grass has been named 

 after Miss Franks, Assistant in the Government Herbarium, who dissected it, and has 

 made all the drawings and dissections in Vol. V. of "Natal Plants," which volume 

 includes grasses only. Dr. 0. Stapf says of this grass :--" A very distinct species, 

 differing from all others by the very narrow leaves, by the spikelets of the pairs being 

 almost alike, the lower glumes without wings flattened dorsally, tuberculate on the 

 keels and intracarinal nerves." He also says : " Mr. Wood's "description has been 

 amplified from the excellent material which he was good enough to communicate to 

 Kew. Technically this striking species would come under the section UuischcBmum, 

 but I have not been able to make out its exact affinities." 



Fig 1, Lower glume; 2, upper glume; 3, lower valve; 4, pale ; 5, stamens and lodicules ; 

 6, upper valve ; 7, pale ; 8, pistil, stamens and lodicules. All enlarged. 



