Dlplachne CLIII. GKAMINE^. 1913' 



the margins ciliate below the middle, the point of the keel scarcely exceeding the 

 hyaline margins, and the lateral nerves occasionally produced into minute points. 

 Orain narrow-obovate, flattened. 



Hab.: Some ye us ago I reooived fragmentary spesimena from Jl/r. Alfred Henri/, Georgian 

 Biver, of a grass which appeared to belong to this species. 



8. J>. fusca (brownish), Beauv. Agrost. 163 ; Benth. Fl. Auatr. vii. 619. A 

 glabrous erect grass of several feet. Leaves narrow, convolute when dry, with 

 long loose sheaths, the ligula jagged. Panicle narrow, 6in. to 1ft. long, with 

 erect branches, the lower ones long. Spikelets sessile or nearly so, rather distant, 

 erect, linear, 6 to 10-flowered, about 4 lines long or rather more and straw- 

 coloured, or longer and dark, the rhachis glabrous or slightly hairy under each 

 glume. Flowering glumes nearly 2 lines long, shortly ciliate on the margins in 

 the lower part, prominently 3-nerved, the keel produced into a short point between 

 or just below the short hyaline terminal lobes. Keels of the palea shortly ciliate. 

 — Turner Austr. Gr. PI. ; Festuca fusca, Linn. ; F. v. M. Fragm. viii. 127 ; 

 Leptochloa fusca, Eunth, Enum. i.' 271 ; Triodia anihigua, E. Br. Prod. 188 ; 

 Uralepis fusca and U. Drummondii, Steud. Syn. Glum. i. 247. 



Hab.: Keppel Bay, li. Brown; Bokhara Flats, Leicftftardi ; and Brisbane Biver. 

 An annual succulent grass, often met with in brackish swamps, where it affords a good fodder, 

 greedily devoured by stock. 



88. CENTOTHECA, Desv. 



(Referring to the prickly glumes). 



Spikelets several (usually 3) flowered, flat, all pedicellate in a loose spreading 

 panicle, the rhachis of the spikelet slender, inarticulate, glabrous. Glumes 

 acute or minutely pointed, unawned, keeled, the lowest flowering glume close 

 above the 2 outer empty ones and like them glabrous, the upper flowering ones 

 bearing on the marginal nerves a few rigid bristles at first erect, at length 

 rsiflexed. Palea 2-keeled. Ovary glabrous. Siyles distinct, short. Grain 

 oblong, not furrowed, free. 



The genus is limited to the single Australian species', generally spread over New Guinea, 

 tropical Asia and Africa. 



1. C. lappacea (burr-like), Desv, ; Kiintli, Enum. i. 366, Revis. Gram. t. 

 70; Benth. Fl. Austr. vii. 640. An erect glabrous grass of many feet. 

 Leaves flat, ^ to fin. broad, the numerous parallel nerves very prominent ; 

 ligula short, ciliate short, ciliate or jagged. Panicle terminal, 8 to lOin. long 

 and as broad when Open, the capillary branches slightly divided. Spikslets 3 to 

 4 lines long, green. Lowest empty glume a little more than 1 line, the 2nd 

 IJ line long ; flowering glumes a little larger, the rhachis produced into a short 

 point beyond the uppermost one, or bearing a small terminal empty glume. 

 Flowers within the glumes often distinctly stipitate with the palea inserted on the 

 stipes. — Beauv. Agrost. t. 14, f. 7. 



Hab.: Daintree Biver, Fitzalan ; Johnstone Biver, Gulliver ; all tropical scrubs. 

 Var. bifiora. Spikelets smaller with only 2 flowering glumes, the lowest glabrous like the 

 outer ones, the upper one alone setiferous. 

 Hab.: Bookingham Bay, Dallachy. 



84. *DACTYLIS, Linn. 

 (Panicle supposed to resemble the fingers of the hand). 



Spikelets several-flowered, sessile and densely crowded in thick one-sided 

 clusters, arranged in a short irregular spike or at the ends of the short branches 

 of ai dense irregular one-sided panicle. Flowering glumes 3 or '5-nerved, the 

 keel prominent and produced into a point or short awn. Grain free, concave or 

 br'oadiy furrowed. 



The genus is limited to a single species common in Europe, temperate Asia and North Africa. 



