Paspalum malacophyllum |
Paspalum quadrifarium |
|
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rib paspalum |
paja colorada, paja manse, tussock paspalum |
|
Habit | Plants perennial; cespitose, sometimes with short rhizomes. | Plants perennial; cespitose. |
Culms | 90-200 cm, erect; nodes sunken, glabrous or pubescent, brown. |
(50)100-180 cm, erect; nodes pubescent. |
Sheaths | pubescent; ligules 4-5 mm, membranous, brown, acute; blades 12-40 cm long, 8-35 mm wide, flat or conduplicate, pubescent below, glabrous above, distinctly pubescent basally. |
pubescent, margins extending into auricles; ligules 1-6.3 mm; blades 15-62 cm long, 4.9-6.1 mm wide, involute to flat, glabrous. |
Panicles | terminal, with 8-25 racemosely arranged branches; branches 1-8 cm, divergent to erect; branch axes 1-1.2 mm wide, margins scabrous, terminating in a spikelet; pedicels 0.2-0.4 and 0.5-1.2 mm long, flattened, scabrous. |
terminal, with 15-44 racemosely arranged branches; branches 1.2-8.5 cm, straight, erect to ascending, lower branches longer than those above; branch axes 0.5-0.6 mm wide, narrowly winged, glabrous, margins scabrous, pubescent, terminating in a spikelet. |
Spikelets | 1.8-2 mm, paired, appressed to or divergent from the branch axes, oblong-elliptic, white to stramineous. |
2-2.5(3) mm long, 0.9-1.3 mm wide, paired, divergent to spreading from the branch axes, elliptic, brown to stramineous, often purple-tinged. |
Glumes | absent; lower lemmas glabrous, ribbed over the veins, sulcate between, 5-veined, margins entire; upper lemmas as long as the lower ones, longitudinally papillose-striate, glabrous, pale-colored. |
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Lower glumes | usually absent, if present, to 0.9 mm, triangular; upper glumes shortly pubescent, 3-veined, purple-spotted, margins entire; lower lemmas glabrous or pubescent, lacking ribs over the veins, 3-veined, margins entire; upper florets 2.2-2.5 mm, white. |
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Upper | florets white to stramineous. |
|
2n | = 40, 60. |
= 20, 30, 40. |
Paspalum malacophyllum |
Paspalum quadrifarium |
|
Distribution |
FL; GA; TX |
MS |
Discussion | Paspalum malacophyllum is native from Mexico to Bolivia and Argentina. It was introduced to the southern United States for forage and soil conservation, and is now established in the southeastern United States, growing in disturbed sites at scattered locations. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Paspalum quadrifarium is native to Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina. It is grown as an ornamental in Florida, but has also become established in disturbed habitats of the southeastern United States. It is considered a noxious weed in New South Wales, Australia. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 25, p. 584. | FNA vol. 25. |
Parent taxa | Poaceae > subfam. Panicoideae > tribe Paniceae > Paspalum | Poaceae > subfam. Panicoideae > tribe Paniceae > Paspalum |
Sibling taxa | ||
Name authority | Trin. | Lam. |
Web links |