Citation: Lindley in T.L. Mitchell, Three Exped. Int. eastern Austral. 2:304 (1838).

Synonymy: Rytidosperma erianthum (Lindley)Connor & Edgar, New Zealand J. Bot. 17:323 (1979).

Common name: Hill wallaby-grass.

Description:
Erect densely tufted perennial, 20-70 cm high; sheaths slender, glabrous or hairy with tubercle-based hairs 4-5 mm long; ligule a ring of hair tufts c. 0.7 mm long, with collar hairs c. 3 mm long; leaves fine, inrolled, rarely flat, to 25 cm long, abaxial surface usually with 4-5 mm long hairs, rarely the hairs only c. 1 mm long, thick and rigid, adaxial surface with hairs c. 1.5 mm long; panicle finally exserted, lanceolate to ovate, 2-7 cm long, bearing 4-15 spikelets, branches pubescent, often with longer hairs at the branching points; spikelets greenish, tinged with purple, 4-6-flowered; florets shorter than the glumes; glumes 10-16 mm long, subequal, 11-13-veined, with broad margins; lemma lanceolate, 3.5-4 mm long (including the callus of 0.6-1 mm), whorl of hairs above the callus about as long as the body of the lemma, with dense whorls of hairs c. 5-7 mm long just below the sinus, glabrous and shining between the whorls; lateral lobes 9-12 mm long, with wide margins narrowing rapidly into 5-6 mm long awns; central awn twisted 3 or 4 times in the lower part, exceeding the lateral lobes by 2-5 mm; palea rather broad, c. 4 mm long, obovate to oblong, shortly exceeding the sinus, firm, shining, occasionally with a few hairs on the back; anthers pale-yellow to orange, 1.5-2 mm long; grain c. 2 mm long.

Published illustration: Cunningham et al. (1982) Plants of western New South Wales, p. 82.

Distribution:  An important grazing species in some areas.   N.S.W.; Vic. Conservation status: native Flowering time: mainly Nov.

SA Distribution Map based on current data relating to specimens held in the State Herbarium of South Australia

Biology: No text

Author: Not yet available