1858 CLIII. GEAMINE^. [notthoellia.^ 



Stems scarcely branched, with single spikeis of 2 to 3in., the articles of the ..'' 



spike densely ciliate at the top. Sessile spikelet l-fiowered, the outer 



glume silky villous 1. B. formosa. 



Stems usually branched. Peduncles solitary in the upper sheats, with a 

 spike of 3 to 6in., quite glabrous. Sessile spikelet above 2 lines long, 



2-flowered 2 7?. exaltata,' . 



Stems branched. Peduncles clustered in the upper sheaths, the spikes 

 slender, under 3in., glabrous. Sessile spikelet under 2 lines long, 

 1 -flowered. 

 Outer glume of the sessile spikelet tuberculate at the base, the nerves 



scarcely winged at the top. Pedicellate spikelet barren 3. U. muriaata. 



Outer glume of the sessile spikelet smooth, the 2 nerves distinctly 

 winged at the top. Pedicellate spikelet often fertile 4. J?.' opMuroides, 



1. R. formosa (beautiful), R. Br. Prod. 206; Benth. Fl. Austr. y\i. 51^, 

 Apparently annual. Stems scarcely branched, above 1ft. long. Leaves narrow, 

 more or less hirsute with spreading hairs. Peduncles solitary in the upper, axils, 

 bearing each a sheathing bract and a single cylindrical spike of 2 or 3in., not 

 1| line diameter, the rhachis exceedingly fragile and each article crowned by a 

 ring of dense, often purplish hairs. Outer glume of the fertile spikelet broad 

 hard and obtuse, but densely covered with appressed hairs of which the upper 

 ones are longer giving it an acute appearance ; 2nd glume broad concave and 

 thin, 3rd and 4th smaller, very thin and hyaline, no male flower in the 3rd, the 

 4th alone flowering, the palea minute or deficient. Barren spikelets sessile, of a 

 single ovate or lanceolate 3 or 5-nerved glabrous glume, with sometimes a 2nd 

 smaller one in its axil. — Kunth, Eevis. Gram. i. t. 91. 



Hah.; Islands of Torres Strait ; Port Denison. 



2. II. exaltata (tall), Linn. f. Suppl. 114 ; Benth. Fl. Austr. vii. 513. 

 Stems stout, erect, attaining 6 to 10ft. Leaves long and rather broad, scabrous, 

 the sheaths more or less hispid. Peduncles solitary in the upper sheaths. Spikes 

 often above 6in. long, cylindrical, 2 lines diameter when old, the upper part often 

 slender with abortive spikelets, the rhachis and spikelets perfectly glabrous. Outer 

 glume Of the fertile spikelets ovate, rather obtuse, slightly convex, about 2 lines 

 long, coriaceous and smooth but with many nerves more visible inside than out ; 

 2nd glume acute, deeply immersed, 3rd and 4th thin and almost hyaline, both with 

 perfect paleas, the 8rd with a male the 4th with a hermaphrodite flower. 

 Pedicellate spikelets much flatter, rather smaller, with 2 male flowers or only a 

 palea in the 3rd glume. — Kunth, Enum. i. 466, R. Br. Prod. 206 ; Roxb. Corom. 

 PI. t. 157. 



Hab.: Gulf of Carpentaria. 

 Very common in tropical Asia. 



3. It. muricata (muricate), Retx ; Kunth, Enum. i. 467 ; Benth. Fl. Austr. 

 vii. 514. Stems branching, 4 to 6ft. high. Leaves rather broad, glabrous except 

 a few cilia at the orifice of the sheaths, the margins scabrous. Spikes 1 to 2in. 

 long, very brittle, clustered in the upper axils on very unequal slender peduncles, 

 with a close sheathing bract at the base of each. Spikelets about 2 lines long ; 

 outer glume of the sessile spikelet closely appressed, obtuse, slightly 2- winged at 

 the end, coriaceous, bearing at the base a few tubercles either on each side or 

 sometimes on the back, the spikelet containing only a single hermaphrodite flower. 

 Pedicellate spikelet either including a male flower or reduced to empty glumes. — 

 B. glandulosa, Trin. in Mem. Acad. Petersb. ser. 6, ii. 250 ; Cmlorhachis muricata, 

 Brongn. in Duperr. Voy. Bot. 65, t. 14. 



Hab.: Etheridge Eiver, lierh. F. Mueller, {Benth.) 

 Also in the Malayan Peninsula and Archipelago. 



4. B.. ophiuroides (Ophiurus-like), Benth. Fl. Austr. vii. 514. A tall, erect 

 glabrous grass. Leaves long, often ^in. broad, the upper ones with long sheaths 

 passing into sheathing bracts. Peduncles crowded on the short erect branches of 



