| Synonyms: |
Diplachne fusca (L.) P. Beauv. ex Roem. & Schult. Festuca fusca L. |
| Common names: | Swamp grass (English) |
| Frequency: | |
| Status: | |
| Description: |
Aquatic or semi-aquatic rhizomatous perennial up to 200 cm tall, rooting and branching from the lower nodes; ligule a pointed membrane; leaf lamina 25–55 cm × 2–5 mm, tough, linear, involute, greyish-green with a broad white central nerve, tapering to a fine point.Inflorescence 20–35 cm long, compact and cylindrical at first, later more open; racemes numerous, slender, 7–15 cm long, ± straight.Spikelets 6–11-flowered, 8–15 mm long, narrowly elliptic to elliptic, slightly overlapping; glumes unequal, keeled, the inferior 2–4.5 mm long, lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, acute or acuminate, the superior 3.3–7.5 mm long, narrowly oblong, acute or obtuse and minutely mucronate; lemmas 3.2–5.9 mm long, narrowly oblong, dorsally rounded, pilose on the nerves below, 2- or more toothed at the apex and mucronate or shortly awned.Caryopsis 1.6–1.8 mm long, elliptic-oblong, dorsiventrally flattened. |
| Type location: |
Palestine |
| Notes: | |
| Derivation of specific name: | fusca: greyish-brown or dark greyish-brown, fuscous |
| Habitat: | |
| Altitude range: (metres) | |
| Flowering time: | |
| Worldwide distribution: | tropical and subtropical Old World, including Australia |
| Growth form(s): | |
| Endemic status: | |
| Red data list status: | |
| Insects associated with this species: | |
| Spot characters: | Display spot characters for this species |
| Literature: |
Chapano, C. & Mugarisanwa, N.H. (2003). Plants of the Matobo District National Herbarium and Botanic Garden, Zimbabwe Page 14. As Diplachne fusca Cope, T.A. (1999). Poaceae Flora Zambesiaca 10(2) Page 25. Heath, A. & Heath, R. (2009). Field Guide to the Plants of Northern Botswana including the Okavango Delta Kew Publishing Page 438. (Includes a picture). Jackson, G. & Wiehe, P.O. (1958). An Annotated Check List of Nyasaland Grasses The Government Printer, Zomba, Nyasaland Page 36. As Diplachne fusca Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 106. Ntore, S. & al. (2024). Checklist of the vascular plants of Burundi Page 201. Roodt, V. (2015). Grasses & Grazers of Botswana and the surrounding savanna Struik Nature, South Africa Pages 86 - 87. as Diplachne fusca (Includes a picture). Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 140. |