Poaceae
Apluda

Apluda mutica L.

First published in Sp. Pl.: 82 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Mascarenes, Socotra, Asia to W. Pacific. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the subtropical biome.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Perennial. Culms scandent, or decumbent, or prostrate; 30-300 cm long; rooting from lower nodes. Ligule a ciliolate membrane. Leaf-blade base tapering to the midrib. Leaf-blades 5-25 cm long; 2-10 mm wide. Leaf-blade apex attenuate; filiform.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Synflorescence compound; paniculate; 3-40 cm long; lax. Inflorescence composed of racemes; terminal and axillary; subtended by a spatheole; enclosed. Spatheole ovate; 3.5-10 cm long; membranous. Racemes 1; single; bearing a triad of spikelets. Rhachis obsolete. Spikelets in threes. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels oblong; flattened; subequal; 2-4 mm long; ciliate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Companion sterile spikelets rudimentary and well-developed (pair unequal); male; lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 2-5 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet glumes herbaceous; acute; muticous. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 2; enclosed by glumes; muticous. Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 2-6 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus oblong (bulbous); 0.5-2.5 mm long; base obtuse.
Sterile
Companion sterile spikelets rudimentary and well-developed (pair unequal); male; lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 2-5 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet glumes herbaceous; acute; muticous. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 2; enclosed by glumes; muticous.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 2-6 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus oblong (bulbous); 0.5-2.5 mm long; base obtuse.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes dissimilar; 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; winged on keel; winged narrowly; 13 -veined. Lower glume apex dentate; 2 -fid. Upper glume lanceolate; gibbous; chartaceous; 1-keeled; 5-9 -veined. Upper glume primary vein scaberulous. Upper glume apex acute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Basal sterile florets male; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret oblong; 0.9 length of spikelet; hyaline; 3 -veined; acute. Fertile lemma oblong; 4 mm long; hyaline; without keel; 3 -veined. Lemma apex entire, or lobed; 2 -fid; incised 0.6 of lemma length; muticous, or awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; straight, or geniculate; 4-12 mm long overall; without a column, or with twisted column. Palea hyaline; 0 -veined; without keels.
Distribution
Africa: northeast tropical. Asia-temperate: Soviet Middle Asia, western Asia, Arabia, China, and eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: India, Indo-China, Malesia, and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia. Pacific: southwestern and northwestern.
Reference
Andropogoneae. FW 1995.
[GB]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora

    • Clayton, W.D., Vorontsova, M.S., Harman, K.T. and Williamson, H. (2006 onwards). GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora.
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images