Poaceae
Eragrostis

Eragrostis crassinervis Hack.

First published in Bull. Herb. Boissier, sér. 2, 1: 774 (1901)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Zimbabwe to S. Africa. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Gramineae, T. Cope. Flora Zambesiaca 10:2. 1999

Morphology General Habit
Densely caespitose perennial without stolons but sometimes with short oblique rhizome; culms up to 60 cm tall, erect or ascending, unbranched or rarely branched, glabrous at the nodes, eglandular; basal leaf sheaths glabrous, chartaceous, compressed and keeled, gland-dotted on the nerves, persistent; ligule a line of hairs; leaf laminas 3.5–8(10) cm × 1.5–2 mm, narrowly linear, involute or rarely flat, villous above, gland-dotted on the midnerve beneath.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle 4–10(12) cm long, oblong to narrowly elliptic, gland-dotted on the axis, branches and pedicels, the spikelets condensed about the branches and branchlets on pedicels up to 0.7 mm long, the primary branches not in whorls, terminating in a fertile spikelet, glabrous in the axils.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 5–12(15) × 2–3 mm, narrowly oblong, laterally compressed, 12–20-flowered, the lemmas disarticulating from below upwards, the rhachilla persistent; glumes subequal, 1.3–1.9 mm long, reaching to between 2/3 and 4/5 the way along the adjacent lemmas, keeled, narrowly oblong-lanceolate in profile, gland-dotted on the keel, acute at the apex; lemmas 1.4–1.8 mm long, keeled, elliptic in profile, membranous with raised prominent lateral nerves, diverging from the rhachilla at c. 45°, those in opposite rows not imbricate, the rhachilla visible between them, often tinged with purple, gland-dotted on the keel, scaberulous on the back above, obtuse at the apex with the nerves excurrent as short mucros; palea persistent, glabrous on the flanks, the keels slender, wingless, scabrid; anthers 3, 0.5–0.6 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis 0.4–0.5 mm long, subrotund.
[FZ]

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]

Morphology General Habit
Perennial; caespitose. Stolons absent, or present. Glands sunken crateriform. Culms 15-60 cm long. Leaf-sheaths glandular. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 5-10 cm long; 1-2.5 mm wide.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open, or contracted; linear, or lanceolate; dense; 6-12 cm long; contracted about primary branches. Primary panicle branches indistinct the panicle almost racemose, or simple; bearing spikelets almost to the base. Panicle branches glandular. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 6-15 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 4.5-8 mm long; 2-3 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 6-15 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 4.5-8 mm long; 2-3 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes deciduous; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 1.5 mm long; 1 length of upper glume; membranous; glandular; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume ovate; 1.5 mm long; 1 length of adjacent fertile lemma; membranous; glandular; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex acute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma oblong; 1.5 mm long; membranous; glandular on veins; keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma lateral veins prominent; excurrent. Lemma apex truncate; mucronate. Palea keels eciliate. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules 2; cuneate; fleshy. Anthers 3; 0.4-0.6 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; orbicular; 0.4-0.5 mm long. Embryo 0.5 length of caryopsis.
Distribution
Africa: southern tropical and south.
Reference
Eragrostideae. Gr S Afr 1993.
[GB]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • 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

    • 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 2026. 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 2026. 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