Themeda.\ 
CLVII. GRAMINEiE (Stapf). 
421 
towards the base, finely rough above or smooth all over except on 
the scabrid and upwards often spinulously ciliolate margins ; midrib 
slender, primary lateral nerves very fine, 3-4 on each side. Spatheate 
panicle leafy, erect, or more or less nodding, from 6 in. (in meagre 
specimens) to over 2 ft. long, in robust specimens decompound to the 
third degree ; primary internodes few to over 9, if numerous the lower 
much elongated, the intermediate rapidly shorter, the upper very 
short (10-15 lin.) ; lowest branches sometimes undivided at the base 
with a more or less elongated basal internode or more usually like 
the following forming tiers of up to 5 rays, all these tiers except the 
uppermost mixed ; compound rays of the lower tiers from over 
G in. to 2 in. long, often nodding, the longest with up to 8 secondary 
tiers, the lowest of these secondary tiers frequently with a short 1-2- 
noded compound ray bearing 1 or 2 tertiary few-rayed tiers ; all 
simple rays filiform, somewhat compressed, glabrous or shortly 
bearded at the tips, short and usually enclosed in the sheath of the 
supporting leaf or spathe, those of the ultimate tiers about 3 lin. 
long, hence the monostachya crowded into dense apparently sessile 
heads, scattered or more or less closely approximate along the 
longer branches and the upper part of the primary axis of the panicle ; 
degree of division of the panicle very variable according to the vigour 
of the plant ; subtending leaves of all tiers distinctly differentiated 
into sheath and blade, the sheaths rapidly shortening upwards (down 
to 6-4 lin.), relatively broad, compressed, keeled, more or less 
herbaceous, often with a few tubercle-based stiff hairs near the mouth, 
blades always conspicuously longer than the sheath, linear, tapering 
almost from the base, very acute, somewhat rigid, often sparingly 
fimbriate at the base, keeled, the keel and the margins sharply 
scabrid. Spatheoles compressed, cymbiform, lanceolate, caudate- 
acuminate, glabrous, more or less scarious with subhyaline margins, 
8-6 lin. long, turning reddish ; peduncles usually under § lin. long, 
glabrous. Racemes with a single fertile spikelet. Fertile spikelet 
including the callus 2 lin. long, awned ; callus very short, obtuse, 
densely and shortly rufously bearded. Lower glume rigidly and 
minutely puberulous all over except at the membranous obtuse 
tip, at length dark brown, very faintly 7-9-nerved ; upper glabrous, 
ciliolate. Lower floret : valve delicate, ovate-lanceolate, acute, 
1J lin. long. Upper floret ^ : awn about 14 in. long, slender, 
flexuous, more or less distinctly kneed at the middle, often bent 
again below it, brown, paler upwards, column very finely hirtellous. 
Anthers §— § lin. long. Involucral spikelets inserted at almost the 
same level, oblong, up to 2J lin. long, persistent ; glumes equal, 
lower acute with a fine point, produced at the base into a minute 
swelling, closely nerved, green, at length straw-colour, quite glabrous 
apart from a few (4-6) long submarginal tubercle-based bristles near 
the tip, one margin narrowly involute, the other very narrowly 
indexed- the corresponding keel with a membranous margin or very 
