Poaceae
Sporobolus

Sporobolus foliosus (Trin.) P.M.Peterson & Saarela

First published in Taxon 63: 1236 (2014)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is California to Mexico (Baja California). It is a perennial or rhizomatous geophyte and grows primarily in the subtropical biome.

Descriptions

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; culms solitary, or caespitose. Rhizomes elongated. Culms erect; 100-150 cm long; spongy; rooting from lower nodes. Leaf-sheath oral hairs ciliate. Ligule a fringe of hairs; 1-2 mm long. Leaf-blades flat, or involute; 3-6 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous. Leaf-blade margins smooth, or scaberulous. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence composed of racemes; exserted, or embraced at base by subtending leaf. Racemes 3-25; borne along a central axis; closely spaced; in a multilateral false spike; appressed; unilateral; 2-8 cm long; bearing 8-30 fertile spikelets on each. Central inflorescence axis 12-25 cm long. Rhachis angular; smooth on margins; glabrous on margins; terminating in a spikelet, or barren extension. Spikelet packing broadside to rhachis; regular; 2 -rowed. Spikelets appressed; solitary. Fertile spikelets sessile.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 8-25 mm long; falling entire.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 8-25 mm long; falling entire.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes dissimilar; reaching apex of florets, or exceeding apex of florets. Lower glume linear; 6-12 mm long; 0.5-0.75 length of upper glume; membranous; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Lower glume primary vein eciliate, or ciliate. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume surface glabrous, or pilose. Lower glume apex obtuse to acuminate. Upper glume lanceolate; 8-25 mm long; 1-1.2 length of adjacent fertile lemma; herbaceous; 1-keeled; 1-3 -veined. Upper glume primary vein eciliate, or ciliate. Upper glume surface glabrous, or pilose. Upper glume margins eciliate, or ciliate. Upper glume apex obtuse to acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma oblong; 8-20 mm long; herbaceous; keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma surface glabrous, or pilose. Lemma margins eciliate, or ciliate. Lemma apex emarginate, or obtuse. Palea 2 -veined.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules absent. Anthers 3; 3-6 mm long.
Distribution
North America: southwest USA and Mexico.
Reference
Cynodonteae. Mobberley 1993.
[GB]

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

    • 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 2024. 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 2024. 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