Family: Poaceae
Pennisetum villosum
Citation:
R. Br. ex Fresen., Mus. Senckenb. Abh. 2:134 (1837).
Synonymy: Not Applicable Common name: Feather-top, long-style feather-grass.
Description:
Stems ascending, silky below the panicle, 40-50 cm high; sheaths and blades keeled, the sheaths villous at the orifice, the blades narrow, channelled; ligule of short hairs.
Panicle pale, spike-like but rather loose, 4-8 cm long, 1.5-3 cm broad (excluding the long bristles); spikelets in groups of 1-5 on very short pedicels, subtended by an involucre of many unequal bristles to 3-4 cm long and plumose in the lower half, with a few short outer simple bristles, conical, green, 10-12 mm long, acute, glabrous; first glume minute, obtuse, the second glume not half as long as the spikelet, also hyaline, 1-3nerved; first lemma c. 8 mm long, membranous, 7-9-nerved, containing a palea and stamens, second (fertile) lemma rather longer, membranous (second glume and lemmas terminating in a seabrous mucro); anthers orange, 4-5 mm long.
Published illustration:
Burbidge (1970) Australian grasses 3:pl. 65; Cunningham et al. (1982) Plants of western New South Wales, p. 129.
Distribution:
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All mainland States except the N.T.
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Conservation status:
naturalised
Flowering time: Feb. — June.
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SA Distribution Map based
on current data relating to
specimens held in the
State Herbarium of South Australia
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Biology:
No text
Uses:
Cultivated as an ornamental, but becomes a weed.
Author:
Not yet available
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