Leaf blade
linear, expanded or folded, strongly keeled, blunt at apex; sheaths keeled and margins free; ligule a fringed membrane, rarely an unfringed membrane
Inflorescence
of 2-many spikes, digitate or subdigitate, sometimes a compact cluster; spikelets solitary, sessile or subsessile, arranged in 2 rows on one side of flattened rachis
Spikelet
laterally compressed, disarticulating above glumes and between florets or not disarticulating; glumes very unequal, shorter than spikelet, keeled, scabrid on keels, awnless; lower glume 1-nerved; upper glume 3-7-nerved, herbaceous with membranous margins, narrowly winged on keel
Florets
2-15, bisexual or uppermost floret reduced; lemmas similar, membranous, glabrous, strongly keeled, keel sometimes thickened, 3-nerved, sometimes with 1-3 closely spaced additional nerves, lateral nerves often shorter than lemma, awnless to mucronate; palea slightly shorter lemma, notched at apex, 2-keeled with keels winged
Lodicules
2, minute, cuneate, glabrous
Stamens
3
Ovary
glabrous; styles slender from a broadened base, distinct, plumose above
Caryopsis
ellipsoid to subglobose, surface ornamented, enclosed in a free pericarp
x = 9 (polyploidy)
Nomenclature:
Eleusine
Gaertn.
Gaertner: 7 (1788)
Stapf: 644 (1900)
Stent: 291 (1924)
Chippindall: 129 (1955)
Launert: 74 (1970)
Phillips: 251 (1972)
Phillips: 260 (1974)
Clayton & Renvoize: 221 (1986)
Gibbs Russell et al.: 129 (1990)
Watson & Dallwitz: 364 (1994)
Distribution & Notes:
Global
: Species 9, mainly Africa
Southern Africa
: Species 4, widespread
References:
CHIPPINDALL, L.K.A. 1955. A guide to the identification of grasses in South Africa. In D. Meredith,
The grasses and pastures of South Africa
. Central News Agency, Cape Town
CLAYTON, W.D. & RENVOIZE S.A. 1986. Genera graminum. Grasses of the world.
Kew Bulletin
. Additional series 13
GAERTNER, J. 1788.
De fructibus et seminibus plantarum
1. Academia Carolina, Stuttgart
GIBBS RUSSELL, G.E., WATSON, L., KOEKEMOER, M., SMOOK, L., BARKER, N.P., ANDERSON, H.M. & DALLWITZ. M.J. 1990. Grasses of southern Africa.
Memoirs of the Botanical Survey of South Africa
No. 58
LAUNERT, E. 1970.
Gramineae
.
Prodromus einer Flora von Südwestafrika
160
PHILLIPS, S.M. 1972. A survey of the genus
Eleusine
Gaertn. (
Gramineae
) in Africa.
Kew Bulletin
27
PHILLIPS, S.M. 1974.
Flora of tropical East Africa
.
Gramineae
(Part 2)
STAPF, O. 1898-1900.
Gramineae
.
Flora capensis
7
STENT, S.M. 1924. South African
Gramineae
. Grasses of the Transvaal as represented in the National Herbarium.
Bothalia
1
WATSON, L. & DALLWITZ, M.J. 1994.
The grass genera of the world
, revised edn. CAB International, Oxon
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