Coix lacryma-jobi
Job's-tears
to 3 m.
mostly cauline, evidently distichous;
blades to 75 cm long, 1.5-6 cm wide.
usually 8-12 mm, varying in color.
glumes of functional pistillate spikelets 6-10 mm, hyaline below, 5-7-veined, with a 1-3 mm coriaceous beak.
rames 10-35 mm, with 3-25 spikelet pairs, disarticulating at maturity;
spikelets 5-9 mm, dorsally compressed;
glumes exceeding the florets, with 15+ veins;
lower glumes elliptic to obovate, somewhat asymmetrical, margins folded inward, apices obtuse;
upper glumes lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, keels often winged, apices acute;
upper lemmas 5-8 mm, hyaline, elliptic to ovate, 3-veined;
upper paleas similar but 2-veined;
anthers 3-6 mm.
= 20.
Coix lacryma-jobi
Coix lacryma-jobi is a tall, maize-like plant. In North America, it is usually grown as an ornamental, but it has become established at scattered locations in the Flora region. The involucres, which can be used as beads, may be white, blue, pink, straw, gray, brown, or black, with the color being distributed evenly, irregularly, or in stripes. Cultivars with easily removed involucres are grown for food and beverage, especially in Asia.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
WA
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
