Family:
Poaceae Barnhart
Genus:
Sorghum Moench

Sorghum virgatum (Hack.) Stapf

This species is accepted, and its native range is Mauritania to S. Syria.

[FWTA]

Gramineae, W. D. Clayton. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:2. 1972

Morphology General Habit
Annual up to 1·5 m. high.

[GB]
Morphology General Habit
Annual. Culms erect; 50-100 cm long. Culm-nodes glabrous, or pubescent. Leaves cauline. Ligule a ciliolate membrane; 2 mm long. Leaf-blades 15-45 cm long; 4-8 mm wide.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle with branches tipped by a raceme. Panicle open; lanceolate; 15-60 cm long. Racemes 1-4 cm long; bearing 3-7 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; ciliate on margins. Rhachis internodes filiform. Rhachis internode tip transverse; cupuliform. Spikelets appressed; in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels filiform; flattened; ciliate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; male; linear to lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 6-7 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet glumes chartaceous; acute; muticous. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas enclosed by glumes. Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; acute; 6.5-7 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus base obtuse.
Sterile
Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; male; linear to lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 6-7 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet glumes chartaceous; acute; muticous. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas enclosed by glumes.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; acute; 6.5-7 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus base obtuse.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes dissimilar; with lower wider than upper; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume lanceolate; 1 length of spikelet; coriaceous; much thinner above; without keels; keel-less except near apex. Lower glume surface glabrous to pubescent. Lower glume margins ciliolate. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume lanceolate; coriaceous; much thinner above; without keels. Upper glume surface glabrous to pubescent. Upper glume apex acute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret lanceolate; 0.8 length of spikelet; hyaline; 2 -veined; acute. Fertile lemma lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 1-3 mm long; hyaline; 1 -veined. Lemma apex dentate; 2 -fid; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; geniculate; 8-16 mm long overall; with twisted column. Column of lemma awn glabrous. Palea absent or minute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules 2; oblong; fleshy. Anthers 3. Stigmas 2.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with adherent pericarp. Hilum punctiform. Endosperm farinose. Disseminule comprising a rhachis internode.
Distribution
Africa: north, west tropical, and northeast tropical. Asia-temperate: western Asia and Arabia.
Reference
Andropogoneae. TAC 1997.

Doubtfully present in:

Saudi Arabia

Native to:

Chad, Egypt, Lebanon-Syria, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Palestine, Senegal, Sinai, Sudan

Introduced into:

Ethiopia, Morocco

Sorghum virgatum (Hack.) Stapf appears in other Kew resources:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status Has image?
Kotschy [173], Sudan K000280817 isosyntype Yes
Schweinfurth [529], Sudan K000280816 Unknown type material Yes
Schweinfurth, G. [538], Sudan K000280815 Unknown type material Yes
Schweinfurth, G. [529], Sudan K000280830 Unknown type material Yes
Verboom, W.C. [1184], Zambia K000731362 No
Andrews, F.W. [A2763], Sudan K000731317 No

First published in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 9: 111 (1917)

Accepted by

  • Barry, J. P. & Celles, J.S. (1991). Flore de Mauritanie 2: 360-550. Centre Regional de Documentation Pedagogique, Nice.
  • Boudet, G., Lebrun, J.P. & Demange, R. (1986). Catalogue des plantes vasculaires du Mali: 1-465. Etudes d'Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux.
  • Clayton, W.D., Harman, K.T. & Williamson, H. (2006). World Grass Species - Synonymy database The Board of Trustees of the 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.
  • Danin, A. (2004). Distribution Atlas of Plants in the Flora Palaestina area: 1-517. The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Jerusalem.
  • Darbyshire, I., Kordofani, M., Farag, I., Candiga, R. & Pickering, H. (eds.) (2015). The Plants of Sudan and South Sudan: 1-400. Kew publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  • Dobignard, D. & Chatelain, C. (2010). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 1: 1-455. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève.
  • 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.
  • Peyre de Fabregues, B. & Lebrun, J.-P. (1976). Catalogue des Plantes Vascularies du Niger: 1-433. Institut d' Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux, Maisons Alfort.

Literature

Flora of West Tropical Africa

  • in F.T.A. 9: 111 (1917).

Kew Backbone Distributions

  • Boudet, G., Lebrun, J.P. & Demange, R. (1986). Catalogue des plantes vasculaires du Mali: 1-465. Etudes d'Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux.
  • Boulos, L. (2005). Flora of Egypt 4: 1-617. Al Hadara Publishing, Cairo.
  • Cope, T.A., Knees, S.G. & Miller, A.G. (2007). Flora of the Arabian peninsula and Socotra 5(1): 1-387. Edinburgh University Press.
  • Danin, A. (2004). Distribution Atlas of Plants in the Flora Palaestina area: 1-517. The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Jerusalem.
  • Dobignard, D. & Chatelain, C. (2010). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 1: 1-455. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève.
  • 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.

  • 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

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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

  • 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