Eragrostis ciliaris
Eragrostis echinochloidea
gophertail lovegrass
African love grass, tickgrass
(3)9-75 cm, erect or geniculate in the lower portion, not rooting at the lower nodes, glabrous.
30-100 cm, erect to geniculate, with narrow, sunken glandular bands.
hairy on the margins and at the apices, hairs to 4 mm;
ligules 0.2-0.5 mm;
blades 1.8-12(15) cm long, 2-5 mm wide, usually flat, occasionally involute, glabrous or ciliate basally.
sometimes glandular, apices hairy, hairs to 5 mm;
ligules 0.4-1 mm;
blades 5-21 cm long, 2-6(7) mm wide, flat to involute, with small crateriform glands on the keels and veins, sparsely pilose adaxially.
1.7-15 cm long, 0.2-5 cm wide, cylindrical, contracted or open, branches usually forming glomerate lobes, sometimes more open, often interrupted in the lower portion;
primary branches 0.4-4 cm, appressed or diverging to 50° from the rachises;
pulvini usually glabrous, occasionally sparsely pilose;
pedicels 0.1-1 mm, erect, shorter than the spikelets, glabrous.
4-19 cm long, 0.8-7 cm wide, oblong to ovate, glomerate, spikelets clustered in 1-sided groups;
primary branches 0.5-7.5 cm, diverging 10-90° from the rachises, angled, sinuous, glandular;
pulvini hairy, hairs to 2 mm;
pedicels 0.2-2 mm, stout, erect, without a narrow band or abscission line near the apices.
1.8-3.2 mm long, 1-2 mm wide, elliptical-ovate to ovate-lanceolate, yellowish-brown, sometimes with a purple tinge, with 6-11 florets;
disarticulation basipetal, glumes peristent.
2-5 mm long, 2-3.5 mm wide, broadly ovate, greenish, stramineous to plumbeous, with 7-14 florets;
disarticulation basipetal, glumes persistent.
ovate to lanceolate, keels scabridulous, veins commonly green, apices acute;
lower glumes 0.7-1.2 mm;
upper glumes 1-1.6 mm;
lemmas 0.8-1.3 mm, elliptical-ovate to lanceolate, membranous, keels scabridulous, lateral veins evident, apices obtuse to acute;
paleas 0.8-1.3 mm, membranous, keels prominently ciliate, cilia 0.2-0.8 mm, apices obtuse to acute;
anthers 2, 0.1-0.3 mm, purplish.
subequal, 1.7-2.2 mm, ovate, membranous, keels with small crateriform glands, apices acute to acuminate;
lemmas 1.8-2.3 mm, broadly ovate to orbicular, chartaceous, keels with small crateriform glands, apices acute to obtuse;
paleas 1.7-2.2 mm, chartaceous, each side with a broad wing at the base, wings often projecting beyond the lemma bases, apices acute;
anthers 3, 0.5-0.9 mm, yellowish.
0.4-0.5 mm, ovoid, reddish-brown.
0.8-1.1 mm, ellipsoid, reddish-brown.
= 20, 40.
= 30.
Eragrostis ciliaris
Eragrostis echinochloidea
Eragrostis ciliaris is native to the paleotropics. It is naturalized in parts of the United States, growing along roadsides, on waste sites, in xerothermic vegetation, and sometimes in saline habitats, at 0-200 m. It may be more widespread than indicated.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Eragrostis echinochloidea is native to southern Africa. It is now established in Arizona, growing in gravel soils, often along roadsides and in sidewalks, from 700-1000 m. It has also been found in Prince George's County, Maryland.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Panicles 0.2-1.5 cm wide, contracted, the branches mostly appressed to the rachises, congested, forming glomerate lobes; spikelets densely packed | var. ciliaris |
1. Panicles 1.5-5 cm wide, open, the branches spreading 20-50° from the rachises; spikelets widely separated from each other | var. laxa |
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