Ancistrachne maidenii

Ancistrachne maidenii (A.A.Ham.)Vickery. Contrib.
N. S. Wales Nat. Herb.
3: 83 (1961).

Classification. (GPWG 2001) : Subfamily
Panicoideae. Paniceae.

Basionym and/or
Replacement Name:
 Eriochloa
maidenii
.

Type of Basionym or
Protologue Information
: Australia: New South Wales: Hawkesbury River,
3–5–1912, Hamilton s.n. (HT: NSW-52514).

Key references
(books and floras):
[2002] D.Sharp & B.K.Simon, AusGrass, Grasses of
Australia
, [2008] S.W.L.Jacobs, R.D.B.Walley & D.J.B.Wheeler, Grasses
of New South Wales
(121).

Illustrations:
[2008] S.W.L.Jacobs, R.D.B.Whalley & D.J.B.Wheeler, Grasses of New South
Wales
, 4th edn (121).

Derivation: in
honor of Joseph Henry Maiden (1859–1925) English-born Australian botanist.

Habit.
Perennial. Culms decumbent, 30–100 cm tall, wiry, 8–20 -noded. Mid-culm nodes
glabrous. Ligule a fringe of hairs, 0.4–0.6 mm long. Leaf-blades linear or
lanceolate, flat or involute, 1–4 cm long, 1–8 mm wide.

Inflorescence.
Inflorescence compound, a panicle. Racemes 1, 3–10 cm long.

Spikelets. Spikelets
pedicelled, 1–2 in the cluster. 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, oblong, dorsally
compressed, 2.5–3 mm long.

Glumes.
Glumes dissimilar, thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume oblong, hyaline,
without keels, 0–3 -nerved. Lower glume surface glabrous or indumented. Upper
glume lanceolate, 2.5–3 mm long, scarious, without keels, 5–9 -nerved. Upper
glume surface indumented. Florets. Basal sterile florets 1, barren,
without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret 100 % of length of
spikelet, membranous, 7–9 -nerved.

Fertile lemma 2.2–2.7
mm long, without keel. Lemma apex mucronate.

Continental
Distribution
: Australasia.

Australian
Distribution
: New South Wales.

New South Wales:
Central Coast.

Notes.
A rare species with questionable taxonomic status.

In dry sclerophyll
forests. Flowers Jan.-June.

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