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Chinese Fountaingrass, foxtail Fountaingrass

mission grass

Habit Plants perennial; cespitose. Plants annual or perennial; cespitose from a hard, knotty base.
Culms

30-100 cm, erect;

nodes glabrous.

30-200 cm, erect, branching;

nodes glabrous.

Sheaths

glabrous, margins ciliate;

ligules 0.2-0.5 mm, membranous, ciliate;

blades (10)30-60 cm long, 2-8(12) mm wide, flat to folded, glabrous, margins ciliate basally.

glabrous, margins ciliate;

ligules 1.5-2.7 mm;

blades 15-55 cm long, 4-18 mm wide, flat, glabrous or pubescent.

Panicles

all terminal, 6-20 cm long, 20-53 mm wide, fully exerted from the sheaths, erect, green to brown, deep purple, or stramineous to creamy-white;

rachises terete, with pubescent hairs.

terminal, 10-25 cm long, 15-30 mm wide, fully exerted from the sheaths, erect to drooping, white, yellow, light brown, or pink to deep purple;

rachises terete, scabrous.

Spikelets

5.5-8.4 mm, sessile or subsessile, glabrous;

pedicels to 0.1 mm;

lower glumes 0.2-1.4 mm, veinless;

upper glumes 2-4.9 mm, to 1/2 as long as the spikelet, 1-5-veined, acute to broadly acute;

lower florets sterile;

lower lemmas 4.9-8.1 mm, 7-9(10)-veined;

lower paleas absent;

upper lemmas 5.2-7.6 mm, 5-7-veined, acuminate;

anthers 3, 3-4.5 mm.

3-4.5 mm, sessile;

lower glumes absent or to 2 mm, veinless;

upper glumes 3-4.5 mm, glabrous, 5-7-veined, 3-lobed;

lower florets sterile or staminate;

lower lemmas 3-3.9 mm, 5-7-veined, apices lobed;

lower paleas 2.9-3.7 mm;

anthers absent or 1.7-2 mm;

upper florets disarticulating at maturity;

upper lemmas 1.7-3 mm, coriaceous, shiny, 5-veined, apices ciliate;

anthers 1.3-2.1 mm.

Caryopses

about 1.7 mm, concealed by the lemma and palea at maturity.

Fascicles

9-16 per cm;

fascicle axes 1.5-5.6 mm, with a stipelike base of 1-5.6 mm and 1(2) spikelet(s);

outer bristles 13-19, 0.8-15.6 mm;

inner bristles 7-10, 11.2-30 mm, scabrous;

primary bristles 26.7-35 mm, scabrous, usually not noticeably longer than the other bristles.

33-45 per cm, disarticulating at maturity;

fascicles axes 0.2-0.5 mm, with 1 spikelet;

outer bristles 13-30, 1.3-5 mm, scabrous;

inner bristles 6-14, 4.3-11.5 mm, long ciliate;

primary bristles 14-25 mm, long-ciliate, noticeably longer than the other bristles.

2n

= 18.

= 18, 36, 45, 48, 52, 53, 54, 56, 78.

Pennisetum alopecuroides

Pennisetum polystachion

Distribution
from FNA
AR; IL; NC; NY; OH; PA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; TX; HI; PR
Discussion

Pennisetum alopecuroides is native to southeast Asia. It is frequently grown as an ornamental in the Flora region.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Pennisetum polystachion is a polymorphic, weedy African species that has become established in the tropics and subtropics, including Florida. The U.S. Department of Agriculture considers it a noxious weed. Only Pennisetum polystachion subsp. setosum (Sw.) Brunken has been found in the Flora region. It differs from P. polystachion (L.) Schutt. subsp. polystachion as indicated:

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Plants annual, usually profusely branching; fascicles white, pink, red, or deep purple
subsp. polystachion
1. Plants perennial, usually sparingly branched; fascicles yellow, light brown, or purplish
subsp. setosum
Source FNA vol. 25. FNA vol. 25.
Parent taxa Poaceae > subfam. Panicoideae > tribe Paniceae > Pennisetum Poaceae > subfam. Panicoideae > tribe Paniceae > Pennisetum
Sibling taxa
P. advena, P. ciliare, P. clandestinum, P. flaccidum, P. glaucum, P. latifolium, P. macrostachys, P. macrourum, P. nervosum, P. orientale, P. pedicellatum, P. petiolare, P. polystachion, P. purpureum, P. setaceum, P. setigerum, P. villosum
P. advena, P. alopecuroides, P. ciliare, P. clandestinum, P. flaccidum, P. glaucum, P. latifolium, P. macrostachys, P. macrourum, P. nervosum, P. orientale, P. pedicellatum, P. petiolare, P. purpureum, P. setaceum, P. setigerum, P. villosum
Subordinate taxa
P. polystachion subsp. polystachion, P. polystachion subsp. setosum
Name authority (L.) Spreng. (L.) Schult.
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