Poaceae
Cenchrus

Cenchrus longisetus M.C.Johnst.

First published in Sida 1: 182 (1963)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is NE. Tropical Africa to Arabian Peninsula. It is a perennial or rhizomatous geophyte and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome. It is used as animal food and a medicine and has environmental uses.

Descriptions

Distribution
Biogeografic region: Andean, Caribbean. Elevation range: 0–3000 m a.s.l. Cultivated in Colombia. Naturalised in Colombia. Colombian departments: Antioquia, Bolívar, Boyacá, Caldas, Cesar, Cundinamarca, Huila, Norte de Santander, Quindío, Risaralda, Santander, Tolima, Valle del Cauca.
Habit
Herb.
Ecology
Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: artificial - terrestrial.
[UPFC]

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; mat forming. Rhizomes elongated. Culms geniculately ascending, or decumbent; 15-90 cm long. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades flat, or conduplicate; 7-15 cm long; 2-6 mm wide.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle spiciform; oblong, or ovate, or globose; 2-12 cm long; 1-2 cm wide. Primary panicle branches accrescent to a central axis; with lateral stumps on axis. Panicle axis angular; smooth; pilose; bearing deciduous spikelet clusters. Spikelets subtended by an involucre. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1(-4) in the cluster. Involucre composed of bristles; cuneate; 40-70 mm long; base bluntly stipitate (1mm). Involucral bristles deciduous with the fertile spikelets; numerous; with longest bristle scarcely emergent; 40-70 mm long; terete; flexible; plumose.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; cuspidate; 9-14 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; cuspidate; 9-14 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes one the lower absent or obscure, or two; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume oblate; 0.5-1 mm long; 0.05-0.1 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 0-1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse. Upper glume lanceolate, or ovate; 3.5-6 mm long; 0.33-0.5 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 1-3 -veined. Upper glume apex acute, or acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Basal sterile florets male, or barren; with palea, or without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret ovate; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 7-11 -veined; scaberulous; rough on veins; acute, or acuminate. Fertile lemma lanceolate; 9-14 mm long; membranous; without keel; 5-7 -veined. Lemma margins flat. Lemma apex acute. Palea membranous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules absent. Anthers 3; 4-5 mm long; anther tip apiculate. Styles 4 mm long; connate below; 1 of their length connate.
Distribution
Europe: southeastern. Africa: north, Macaronesia, northeast tropical, south, and western Indian ocean. Asia-temperate: Arabia. Asia-tropical: India and Malesia. Australasia: Australia and New Zealand. Pacific: north-central. North America: northeast USA, southwest USA, south-central USA, and Mexico. South America: Caribbean, western South America, Brazil, and southern South America.
Reference
Paniceae. FTA.
[GB]

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

Morphology General Habit
Perennial
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Handsome plumose involucres up to 7 cm. long.
[FWTA]

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Low, mat-forming rhizomatous perennial; stems loosely ascending, up to 45 cm high; leaves linear, flat; ligule a line of hairs
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle densely ovoid to subspherical, 5–10 cm long and wide; rhachis with rounded ribs and short peduncle-stumps, thinly pilose; involucre enclosing 1(–2) subsessile spikelets, with a short villous stipe up to 0.7(–1) mm long; bristles softly plumose below, the longest 35–65 mm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets lanceolate, 8.5–10(–12) mm long; lower glume vestigial or up to 1 mm long; upper glume 1/3–1/2 the length of the spikelet; lower lemma almost as long as the spikelet; upper lemma as long as the spikelet, coriaceous below.
Distribution
N2; Ethiopia, Arabia
Ecology
Altitude range 1500–2100 m.
[FSOM]

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution
Cultivada en Colombia; Alt. 0 - 3000 m.; Andes, Llanura del Caribe.
Morphology General Habit
Hierba
[CPLC]

Uses

Use Animal Food
Used as animal food.
Use Environmental
Environmental uses.
Use Medicines
Medical uses.
[UPFC]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

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

  • Flora of Somalia

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

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical 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

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

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