Poaceae
Panicum

Panicum issongense Pilg.

First published in Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem 15: 706 (1942)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is South Sudan to E. Tropical Africa. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Perennial. Culms decumbent, or rambling; 60-100 cm long. Ligule a ciliate membrane. Leaf-blade base cordate. Leaf-blades lanceolate, or ovate; 8-16 cm long; 15-35 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation with distinct cross veins. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pilose. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open; ovate; 15-35 cm long. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets ovate; dorsally compressed; acute; 2-2.5 mm long; falling entire. Rhachilla internodes elongated between glumes.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets ovate; dorsally compressed; acute; 2-2.5 mm long; falling entire. Rhachilla internodes elongated between glumes.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes similar; reaching apex of florets; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.75-1 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; (1-)3 -veined. Lower glume surface glabrous, or pubescent. Lower glume apex acute, or acuminate. Upper glume ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 5 -veined. Upper glume surface glabrous, or pubescent. Upper glume apex acute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Basal sterile florets barren; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret similar to upper glume; ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5 -veined; glabrous, or pubescent; acute. Fertile lemma oblong; dorsally compressed; 1.5-2 mm long; indurate; pallid; shiny; without keel. Lemma margins involute. Lemma apex obtuse. Palea involute; indurate.
Distribution
Africa: east tropical.
Reference
Paniceae. FTEA.
[GB]

Gramineae, W. D. Clayton, S. M. Phillips & S. A. Renvoize. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1974

Morphology General Habit
Perennial; culms 60–200 cm. long, branched, geniculately ascending or trailing.
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-blades lanceolate to narrowly ovate, 8–16 cm. long, 15–35 mm. wide, cordate at the base, cross-veins present, glabrous or pilose, acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle broadly ovate, 15–35 cm. long, much branched.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets ovate, 2–2.5 mm. long, glabrous to pubescent, acute; lower glume ovate, 3/4 to as long as the spikelet, (1–)3-nerved, acute to acuminate, separated from the rest of the spikelet by a short internode; upper glume ovate, 5-nerved, acute; lower lemma 5-nerved, sterile, its palea well developed; upper lemma pale, shining.
Habitat
Forest shade; 900–1800 m.
Distribution
K5 T3 T6 T7 U2 U4 not known elsewhere
[FTEA]

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

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • 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

    • '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