Description:

• Perennial, tufted, sometimes reed-like
• Leaf blade linear, usually rolled; basal sheaths, hard, shining, glabrous and smooth, rarely hairy; sheath-mouth often bearded; ligule a short fringe of hairs
• Inflorescence a panicle, narrow, usually contracted, rarely a spike-like raceme; spikelets pedicelled
• Spikelet 8-25 mm long, laterally compressed; disarticulating above glumes and between florets; glumes ± equal or lower glume somewhat shorter, ± as long as to longer than spikelet, similar, chartaceous, margins and apex hyaline, 1-keeled to middle or below, 1-5-nerved, median nerve prominent, lateral nerves usually only prominent in lowermost part, awnless
• Florets 3-10 rarely 2; lower florets bisexual; uppermost floret rudimentary and sterile; lemma 5-16 mm long, rounded on back, similar in texture to glumes, 7-9-nerved, hairy, hairs usually arranged in tufts and fringes, rarely dispersed all over or glabrous, 2-lobed, lobes usually free, usually finely awned, often partly adnate to rarely completely adnate to central awn, central awn from sinus; awn usually geniculate and column twisted, rarely awn straight; callus rounded, hairy; palea bidentate, awnless, almost equal to lemma, 2-keeled, lanceolate, similar in texture to lemma, hyaline, glabrous between keels, rarely densely hairy, nerves ciliate or shortly pilose
• Lodicules 2, long, membranous, often ciliate
• Stamens 3
• Ovary ovoid, glabrous; styles 2, long and plumose
• x = 6

Nomenclature:

• Merxmuellera Conert
  • Conert: 129 (1970)
  • Stapf: 516 (1899) under Danthonia DC.
  • Phillips: 120 (1951) under Danthonia DC.
  • Chippindall: 241 (1955) under Danthonia DC.
  • Conert: 299 (1971)
  • Clayton & Renvoize: 175 (1986) under Rytidosperma Steud.
  • Gibbs Russell et al.: 213 (1990)
  • Watson & Dallwitz: 593 (1994)
  • Benesch: 11 (1995)
• Danthonia DC., in part
  • Stapf: 516 (1899)

Distribution & Notes:

• Southern Africa: Species ± 17, 1 in Namibia: Merxmuellera rangei (Pilg.) Conert, remainder mainly in mountainous areas of Northern Province, Mpumalanga, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, southern regions of the Northern, Western and Eastern Cape