- Family:
- Poaceae Barnhart
- Genus:
- Cenchrus L.
Cenchrus geniculatus Thunb.

[GB]
- Morphology General Habit
- Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes elongated. Butt sheaths glabrous. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 10-150 cm long. Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades flat, or convolute; 3-40 cm long; 2-8 mm wide. Leaf-blade apex attenuate; filiform.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- Inflorescence a panicle. Peduncle glabrous. Panicle spiciform; linear, or oblong; 2-15 cm long. Primary panicle branches accrescent to a central axis; with lateral stumps on axis. Panicle axis with rounded ribs; scaberulous; glabrous; bearing deciduous spikelet clusters. Spikelets subtended by an involucre. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Involucre composed of bristles; oblong; 5-14 mm long; base truncate. Involucral bristles deciduous with the fertile spikelets; numerous; with longest bristle scarcely emergent; 5-14 mm long; terete; flexible; glabrous.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
- Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate, or ovate; dorsally compressed; acuminate; 2.5-5 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.
- Fertile
- Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate, or ovate; dorsally compressed; acuminate; 2.5-5 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
- Glumes one the lower absent or obscure; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Upper glume oblong, or ovate; 0.2-0.25 length of spikelet; hyaline; without keels; 0-1 -veined. Upper glume primary vein absent, or distinct. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex emarginate, or obtuse, or acute.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
- Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret elliptic, or ovate; (0.25-)0.33-0.66(-0.75) length of spikelet; membranous; 1-3 -veined; cuspidate, or acuminate; mucronate. Awn of lower sterile floret 0.5-1.5 mm long. Fertile lemma ovate; 2.5-5 mm long; membranous; without keel; 5-7 -veined. Lemma margins flat. Lemma apex acuminate; muticous, or mucronate. Palea 1 length of lemma; membranous.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
- Lodicules absent. Anthers 3; 1.5-2.5 mm long; anther tip smooth, or penicillate. Styles connate below; 0.2 of their length connate.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
- Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; oblong; dorsally compressed; 1.7 mm long.
- Distribution
- Africa: west tropical, west-central tropical, northeast tropical, east tropical, southern tropical, and south. Asia-temperate: Arabia. Asia-tropical: India. Australasia: Australia.
- Reference
- Paniceae. FTEA.
[FTEA]
Gramineae, W. D. Clayton, S. M. Phillips & S. A. Renvoize. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1974
- Morphology General Habit
- Loosely tufted rhizomatous perennial; culms 10–150 cm. high, erect or geniculate.
- Morphology Leaves
- Leaf-blades linear, 3–40 cm. long, 2–8 mm. wide, flat or convolute, tapering to a filiform tip; sheaths glabrous except for margins and throat.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- Panicle linear to narrowly oblong, 2–15 cm. long, dense; rhachis cylindrical, with rounded ribs and distinct peduncle-stumps, scaberulous; involucre enclosing 1 sessile spikelet, stipeless and truncate at the base; bristles fine, glabrous, the longest 5–14 mm.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
- Spikelets lanceolate to narrowly ovate, 2.5–5 mm. long, acuminate; lower glume suppressed or up to 1 mm. long; upper glume up to 1/4 the length of the spikelet, acute to emarginate; lower lemma barren, (1/4–)1/3–2/3(–3/4) the length of the spikelet, abruptly acuminate to cuspidate, usually with a mucro 0.5–1.5 mm. long; upper lemma as long as the spikelet, acuminate or with a mucro up to 1 mm. long; anther-tips smooth, with a few tiny hairs, or distinctly penicillate.
- Habitat
- Upland pasture, particularly on damp soils, extending to roadsides and old cultivation; 1500–3500 m.
- Distribution
- Zaire and Ethiopia to South Africa K2 K3 K4 K5 T2 T3 T4 T7 U1 U2 U3
[FZ]
Gramineae, W. D. Clayton. Flora Zambesiaca 10:3. 1989
- Morphology General Habit
- Loosely tufted rhizomatous perennial.
- Morphology Culms
- Culms 10–150 cm. high, erect or geniculate, glabrous or pubescent below panicle.
- Morphology Leaves Leaf lamina
- Leaf laminae 2–8 mm. wide, flat or convolute.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- Panicle 2–15 cm. long, linear to narrowly oblong; rhachis cylindrical with rounded ribs and distinct peduncle stumps, scaberulous; involucre enclosing 1 sessile spikelet, the base truncate; bristles fine, glabrous, the longest 5–14 mm.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
- Spikelets 2.5–5 mm. long.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
- Inferior glume suppressed or up to 1 mm. long, the superior up to 1/4 length of spikelet, acute to emarginate.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Lemma
- Inferior lemma (1/4)1/3–2/3(3/4) length of spikelet, abruptly acuminate to cuspidate, usually with a mucro 0.5–1.5 mm. long. Superior lemma thinly coriaceous, acuminate or with a mucro up to 1 mm. long.
- Inferior
- Inferior lemma (1/4)1/3–2/3(3/4) length of spikelet, abruptly acuminate to cuspidate, usually with a mucro 0.5–1.5 mm. long.
- Superior
- Superior lemma thinly coriaceous, acuminate or with a mucro up to 1 mm. long.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Anthers
- Anther tips smooth to distinctly penicillate.
[FWTA]
Gramineae, W. D. Clayton. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:2. 1972
- Morphology General Habit
- Perennial with slender culms 30–90 cm. high
- Ecology
- Damp places.
Native to:
Angola, Burundi, Cape Provinces, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Free State, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, Malawi, Nigeria, Northern Provinces, Rwanda, Senegal, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe
Introduced into:
Canary Is., Sri Lanka
- Cenchrus thunbergii (Kunth) Morrone
- Gymnotrix purpurascens Schrad.
- Panicum geniculatum (Thunb.) Thunb.
- Pennisetum adoense Steud.
- Pennisetum depauperatum Schweinf.
- Pennisetum geniculatum (Thunb.) Leeke
- Pennisetum glabrum Steud.
- Pennisetum leekei Mez
- Pennisetum paucisetum Peter
- Pennisetum schimperi var. glabrum (Steud.) T.Durand & Schinz
- Pennisetum snowdenii C.E.Hubb.
- Pennisetum thunbergii Kunth
Cenchrus geniculatus Thunb. appears in other Kew resources:
Date | Reference | Identified As | Barcode | Type Status | Has image? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Schimper [11], Ethiopia | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000215207 | isotype | No | |
Schimper [11], Ethiopia | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000215208 | isotype | No | |
Schimper [11], Ethiopia | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000215209 | isotype | Yes | |
Frils, I. [1055], Ethiopia | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000281153 | Yes | ||
Snowden, J.D. [1181], Uganda | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000281217 | holotype | Yes | |
Snowden, J.D. [1181], Uganda | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000281219 | holotype | Yes | |
Snowden, J.D. [1181], Uganda | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000281222 | holotype | Yes | |
MacOwan [1661], South Africa | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000281273 | Unknown type material | Yes | |
Galpin, E.E. [2368], South Africa | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000281272 | syntype | Yes | |
Bidgood, S. [5189], Tanzania | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000190417 | No | ||
Bidgood, S. [5413], Tanzania | Pennisetum thunbergii | K000190643 | No | ||
Schweinfurth, G.A. [1471], Yemen | Pennisetum thunbergii | K001056157 | Unknown type material | Yes |
First published in Prodr. Pl. Cap.: 24 (1794)
Not accepted by
- Govaerts, R. (1999). World Checklist of Seed Plants 3(1, 2a & 2b): 1-1532. MIM, Deurne. [Cited as Pennisetum thunbergii.]
Literature
Kew Backbone Distributions
- Clayton, W.D. & Renvoize, S.A. (1982). Gramineae Flora of Tropical East Africa 3: 451-898.
- Clayton, W.D. (1989). Flora Zambesiaca 10(3): 1-231. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- Cope, T.A., Knees, S.G. & Miller, A.G. (2007). Flora of the Arabian peninsula and Socotra 5(1): 1-387. Edinburgh University Press.
- Dassanayake (ed.) (1994). A Revised Handbook to the Flora of Ceylon 8: 1-458. Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. PVT. LTD., New Delhi, Calcutta.
- Dobignard, D. & Chatelain, C. (2010). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 1: 1-455. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève.
- Figueiredo, E. & Smith, G.F. (2008). Plants of Angola Strelitzia 22: 1-279. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
- Germishuizen, G. & Meyer, N.L. (eds.) (2003). Plants of Southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14.: i-vi, 1-1231. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
- Hedberg, I. & Edwards, S. (eds.) (1995). Flora of Ethiopia and Eritrea 7: 1-430. The National Herbarium, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia & The Department of Systematic Botany, Upps.
- Hepper, F.N. (ed.) (1972). Flora of West Tropical Africa, ed. 2, 3(2): 277-574.
- Lebrun, J.P. (1973). Énumération des plantes vasculaires du Sénégal: 1-209. Maisons Alfort: Institut d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire des pays tropicaux.
- Lewalle, J. (1970). Liste floristique et répartition altitudinale de la flore du Burundi occidental: 1-84. Université officielle de Bujumbura.
- Troupin, G. (ed.) (1988). Flora du Rwanda 4: I-X, 1-651. Musee Royal de l'Afrique Centrale.
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Flora Zambesiaca
Flora Zambesiaca
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
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Flora of Tropical East Africa
Flora of Tropical East Africa
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Flora of West Tropical Africa
Flora of West Tropical Africa
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GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora
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Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
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Kew Backbone Distributions
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
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Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0