Urochloa humidicola* (Rendle) O.
Morrone & F.O. Zuloaga. Bull. Misc. Inform. 297 (1936).
Classification. (GPWG 2001) : Subfamily Panicoideae. Paniceae.
Basionym and/or
Replacement Name: Panicum
humidicola Rendle, Cat. Afr. Pl. 2(1): 169 (1899).
Type of Basionym or
Protologue Information: HT: F. Welwitsch 2678, Apr 1868, Angola: Huila:
in rather damp wooded meadows near the river Monino (BM; IT: K, LISU).
Recent synonyms:
Brachiaria humidicola.
Key references
(books and floras): [2002] D.Sharp & B.K.Simon, AusGrass, Grasses of
Australia
(as Brachiaria).
Habit. Perennial. Rhizomes absent. Stolons present. Culms geniculately
ascending or decumbent, 40–100 cm tall. Mid-culm internodes glabrous. Mid-culm
nodes glabrous or pubescent. Ligule a fringed membrane or a fringe of hairs.
Leaf-blades linear or lanceolate, 4–20 cm long, 3–10 mm wide. Leaf-blade
surface glabrous.
Inflorescence.
Inflorescence compound, a panicle of racemes. Racemes 2–3(–4), 2–7 cm long,
2.5–4 mm wide. Central inflorescence axis 2–13 cm long.
Spikelets.
Spikelets sessile. Fertile spikelets 2-flowered, the lower floret barren
(rarely male), the upper fertile, comprising 1 basal sterile florets, comprising
1 fertile floret(s), without rachilla extension, elliptic, dorsally compressed,
3.8–6 mm long. Rhachilla internodes elongated between glumes.
Glumes.
Glumes similar, thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume oblong, membranous,
without keels, 9–11 -nerved. Lower glume surface glabrous or indumented. Upper
glume oblong, 3.8–4.4 mm long, membranous, without keels, 5–9 -nerved. Upper
glume surface glabrous or indumented. Upper glume apex muticous. Florets.
Basal sterile florets 1, male or barren, with palea. Lemma of lower sterile
floret 100 % of length of spikelet, membranous, 5 -nerved.
Fertile lemma 3.2–5.5
mm long, without keel. Lemma apex muticous or mucronate. Palea without keels.
Continental
Distribution: Africa, Australasia, Pacific, and South
America.
Australian
Distribution: Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland.
Queensland: Cook, North Kennedy.
Notes.
Introduced. Africa. Collected as a weed in
sugar cane fields of the Burdekin R. irrigation area; one record of a
naturalisation, but likley for more to occur as it becomes more used as a
pasture species. Flowers Jan.-Mar.
