Eragrostis basedowii

Eragrostis basedowii Jedwabnick. Bot.
Arch.
4: 328 (1923).

Classification. (GPWG 2001) : Subfamily
Chloridoideae. Cynodonteae.

Type of Basionym or
Protologue Information
: Sud-Australien, Flinders Range,
Basedow s.n..

Key references
(books and floras):
[1952] C.A.Gardner, Flora of Western Australia 1
Gramineae (121), [1981] M.Lazarides in J.Jessop (ed)., Flora of
Central Australia
(460), [2002] D.Sharp & B.K.Simon, AusGrass,
Grasses of Australia
, [2006] J.Jessop, G.R.M.Dashorst, F.M.James, Grasses
of South Australia
(364), [2008] S.W.L.Jacobs, R.D.B.Walley &
D.J.B.Wheeler, Grasses of New South Wales (249).

Illustrations:
[2005] K.Mallet (ed.), Flora of Australia 44B: Poaceae 3
(Fig. 64S-T), [2006] J.Jessop, G.R.M.Dashorst, F.M.James, Grasses of South
Australia
 (365, Fig. 292), [2008]
S.W.L.Jacobs, R.D.B.Whalley & D.J.B.Wheeler, Grasses of New South Wales,
4th edn (249).

Habit. Annual.
Culms erect or geniculately ascending or decumbent or prostrate, 2.5–55 cm
tall. Lateral branches simple or sparsely branched. Leaf-sheaths smooth,
glabrous on surface. Ligule a fringe of hairs, 0.25–0.4 mm long. Leaf-blades
straight, flat or involute or convolute, 3–10(–26) cm long, 2–3.5(–5) mm wide.
Leaf-blade surface smooth, glabrous.

Inflorescence.
Inflorescence compound, a panicle. Panicle oblong, 1–8(–20) cm long, 0.5–2.5 cm
wide.

Spikelets.
Spikelets pedicelled. Fertile spikelets many flowered, with at least 2 fertile
florets ((8-)18–30(-54)), comprising (8–)18–30(–54) fertile floret(s), with
diminished florets at the apex, linear or lanceolate or oblong or ovate,
laterally compressed, (5–)11–27(–40) mm long.

Glumes. Glumes
similar. Lower glume lanceolate, membranous, keeled, 1-keeled, 1 -nerved. Upper
glume lanceolate, 1.5–3 mm long, membranous, keeled, 1-keeled, 1 -nerved.

Florets.
Fertile lemma 2–4.5 mm long, keeled, 3 -nerved. Lemma apex muticous or
mucronate. Lodicules present. Anthers 3.

Continental
Distribution
: Australasia.

Australian
Distribution
: Western Australia, Northern Territory, South Australia,
Queensland, New South Wales.

Western Australia: Dampier.
Fortescue. Northern Territory: Central
Australia North, Central Australia South. South Australia: North-western, Lake Eyre, Gairdner-Torrens Basin,
Flinders Ranges, Eastern. Queensland: Burke, Cook, Gregory
North, Mitchell, Warrego, South Kennedy, Gregory South. New South Wales: North Far Western
Plains.

Notes.
Distinguishing characters include annual duration; terminal and axillary
panicles of compact often globular clusters of spikelets; terminal panicles
shorter than uppermost leaves; persistent glumes, lemmas and paleas; unequal
glumes; straight, fragile rachilla exposed at maturity; lemmas and paleas firm
to hardened, granular-scabrid, gibbous or curved, with distinctive inrolled
margins.

Endemic;
distribution is from central N.T. across the Simpson Desert to Tibooburra in W
N.S.W.; also from Burketown to Normanton and E to near Croyden in the Gulf of
Carpentaria, Qld. In or near watercourses, run-on flats, clay pans, swales
lagoons, lakes and saline depressions, sandridges, in clayey or sandy or loamy
soils, sometimes with laterite.; flowers in all months except for Oct. and
Dec.; fruits in all months except for Oct. and Dec.


AVH 2011

                                                    


                            

Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith