Description:

• Perennial, tufted or decumbent and rooting at nodes, sometimes with long creeping rhizomes
• Leaf blade flat, papery; ligule a fringe of hairs
• Inflorescence of spike-like racemes scattered up and appressed to central axis, or a contracted panicle; spikelets solitary, or paired
• Spikelet 2.5-6.5 mm long, lanceolate-oblong, dorsiventrally compressed, falling with glumes; glumes unequal, dissimilar, awnless; lower glume a minute, nerveless, hyaline scale; upper glume membranous, similar to spikelet in shape and size, obscurely 3-7-nerved
• Florets 2; lower floret sterile; lemma resembling upper glume, 5-nerved, awnless, palea 0; upper floret bisexual, lemma similar to firmer in texture than glumes, papery to membranous, obtuse, densely hairy, faintly 3-5-nerved, margins inrolled and clasping edges of palea, awnless; palea equalling lemma, 2-nerved
• Lodicules 2, broadly cuneate
• Stamens 3
• Ovary glabrous; styles distinct, plumose
• Caryopsis ellipsoid, dorsiventrally compressed
• x = 9

Nomenclature:

• Entolasia Stapf
  • Stapf: 739 (1920)
  • Clayton & Renvoize: 573 (1982)
  • Clayton & Renvoize: 278 (1986)
  • Clayton: 46 (1989)
  • Gibbs Russell et al.: 137 (1990)
  • Watson & Dallwitz: 378 (1994)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Species 5, tropical Africa and E Australia
• Southern Africa: Species 2: Entolasia imbricata Stapf and E. olivacea Stapf, N Namibia, Botswana and Northern Province