Description:

• Perennial, strongly rhizomatous
• Leaf blade narrow, leaves mainly basal; ligule a fringed membrane
• Inflorescence a narrow, silky, white or silvery, often spiciform panicle, branches of many very short racemes, rachis tough; spikelets paired, similar, unequally pedicelled, similar, each supported on a slender pedicel
• Spikelet lanceolate to oblong, ± terete, enveloped in long hairs from callus and glumes; glumes equal, similar, as long as spikelet, membranous, long, silky, hairy towards base, awnless
• Florets 2; lower floret sterile, rarely male, reduced to a hyaline lemma, shorter than spikelet, awnless; upper floret bisexual; lemma less firm than glumes, hyaline, lanceolate to oblong, shorter than spikelet, glabrous, awnless; callus short, truncate, hairy with long, white or silvery, silky hairs almost concealing spikelet; palea present or reduced
• Stamens 1 or 2
• Ovary glabrous
• Caryopsis ellipsoid
• x = 5, 10 (polyploidy)

Nomenclature:

• Imperata Cirillo
  • Cirillo: 26 (1792)
  • Stapf: 320 (1898)
  • Chippindall: 476 (1955)
  • Clayton & Renvoize: 700 (1982)
  • Clayton & Renvoize: 333 (1986)
  • Gibbs Russell et al.: 189 (1990)
  • Watson & Dallwitz: 491 (1994)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Species 8, cosmopolitan in tropical and subtropical regions
• Southern Africa: Species 1: Imperata cylindrica (L.) Raeusch., widespread