N. O. GRAMINE*. 1359 



N. 0. GRAMINEJE. 



Erect decumbent or creeping herbs, or in Tribe Banibuseoe 

 shrubs or trees. Stem terete or compressed, jointed ; internodes 

 solid or hollow. Leaves simple, usually long and narrow, 

 entire, parallel-nerved, with a sheathing base distinct from the 

 blade ; sheath split to the base (very rarely entire) with often 

 a transverse hyaline erect appendage (ligula) at the union with 

 the blade, facing the latter. Inflorescence terminal, rarely also 

 from the upper sheaths, consisting of spicate racemed capitate 

 or panicled spikelets. Spikelets of three or more alternate 

 distichous bracts (glumes), of which the two lowest are normally 

 empty, and the succeeding, if more than one, are arranged on 

 an axis (rachilla\ and are all or some of them flowering ; within 

 each flowering glume and opposite to it is an erect narrow 

 2-nerved scale (palea), the margins of which are infolded 

 towards the glume and enclose at the base the true flower. 

 Flowers uni-or bisexual, consisting of 2, rarely 3 or 6 microsco- 

 pic scales (lodicules) representing a perianth, and stamens or a 

 pistil, or both. Stamens 3, rarely 1, 2, 6, or very rarely many, 

 hypogynous ; filaments capillary ; anthers versatile, fugacious, 

 of two parallel cells, with no apparent connective ; pollen glo- 

 bose. Ovary entire, 1-celled ; styles 2, rarely 3, fiee or united 

 at the base, usually elongate, and exserted from the sides or top 

 of the spikelets clothed with simple or branched stigmatic 

 hairs; ovule errect, anatropous. Fruit a seed-like utricle (grain) 

 free within the fig. glume and palea, or adherent to either or 

 both ; pericarp very thin, rarely thick or separable from the seed. 

 Seed erect ; albumen copious, mealy ; embryo minute, at the 

 base of and outside the albumen ; cotyledon scutelliform, bear- 

 ing on its face an erect conical plumule, and descending conical 

 radicle. (Hooker.) 



1331. Oryza Sativa, Linn., H. F.B.I. VII., 92 ; 

 Roxb. 306. 



Sans : — Anna, dhanya, Tandula, vrihi ; nivara. 



Vern :-Ch&val (H) ; Dhan, Chaul (B) ; Bhat (M) ; Arisi 



