Poaceae
Pogonarthria

Pogonarthria squarrosa (Licht.) Pilg.

First published in Notizbl. Königl. Bot. Gart. Berlin 5: 149 (1910)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tropical & S. Africa, Madagacar. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Gramineae, W. D. Clayton, S. M. Phillips & S. A. Renvoize. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1974

Morphology General Habit
Densely tufted perennial; culms 40–150 cm. high, stiffly erect, unbranched.
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-blades 4–33 cm. long, 2–5.5 mm. wide, flat or convolute especially towards the narrow tapering tip, scabrid on the upper surface, smooth beneath; ligule 0.25–0.5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence linear-oblong to pyramidal, 11–44 cm. long; racemes 1–6.5(–8.5) cm. long, ascending or spreading, often falcately curved, tardily deciduous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 4–10-flowered, elliptic to narrowly elliptic-oblong, 3.3–7.8 mm. long, biseriate, disarticulating between the florets, but often also with the glumes and lemmas falling irregularly at maturity leaving the paleas on the rhachilla, tips of the rhachilla-internodes shortly and often sparsely bearded; glumes lanceolate, scabrid especially on the keel, dark reddish brown, the lower 0.8–1.5 mm. long, the upper 1.6–2.3 mm. long; lemmas 2–3 mm. long, scabrid, sharply acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis elliptic-oblong, 0.5–0.75 mm. long.
Figures
Fig. 73.
Habitat
Grassland or open woodland and on waste ground and river banks, on poor sandy soils, occasionally growing on bare sand; 500–1870 m.
Distribution
K2 K4 T1 T2 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8 U1 U3 southwards to Cape Province of South Africa, also from Ghana eastwards to Sudan (Jebel Marra) and Eritrea
[FTEA]

Gramineae, T. Cope. Flora Zambesiaca 10:2. 1999

Morphology General Habit
Densely caespitose perennial; culms up to 100(120) cm tall, stiffly erect, unbranched; leaf laminas (3)7–24(33) cm × (1)2–4(5.5) mm, flat or convolute especially towards the narrow tapering apex.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence (7)12–30(44) cm long; racemes 1–8(10) cm long, ascending or spreading, often falcately curved.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 3–6(8) mm long, 4–10-flowered, elliptic to narrowly elliptic-oblong; rhachilla internodes terete, hairy towards the apex, rarely only scabrid; glumes lanceolate, the inferior 0.9–1.2(1.6) mm long, the superior (1.7)2–2.6(2.8) mm long; lemmas 2.3–2.8(3) mm long (very rarely to 3.6 mm), ovate-lanceolate, sharply acuminate at the apex.
[FZ]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Gramineae, W. D. Clayton. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:2. 1972

Morphology General Habit
Erect perennial 45–90 cm. high
Ecology
Bare stony and disturbed soils.
[FWTA]

Morphology General Habit
Perennial; caespitose. Culms erect; 40-150 cm long. Ligule a fringe of hairs; 0.25-0.5 mm long. Leaf-blades flat, or convolute; 4-33 cm long; 2-5.5 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface scabrous. Leaf-blade apex attenuate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence composed of racemes; bearing juvenile spikelets at emergence. Racemes numerous; borne along a central axis; spreading, or ascending; straight, or arcuate; unilateral; 1-6.5 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 11-44 cm long. Rhachis deciduous from axis; angular. Spikelet packing broadside to rhachis; crowded. Spikelets ascending; solitary. Fertile spikelets sessile.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 4-10 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets elliptic; laterally compressed; 3.3-7.8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas; fragile above; with the distal florets disarticulating separately. Rhachilla internodes pubescent; hairy at tip.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 4-10 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets elliptic; laterally compressed; 3.3-7.8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas; fragile above; with the distal florets disarticulating separately. Rhachilla internodes pubescent; hairy at tip.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume lanceolate; 0.8-1.5 mm long; 0.5-0.7 length of upper glume; membranous; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Lower glume primary vein scabrous. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume surface scabrous. Lower glume apex acuminate. Upper glume lanceolate; 2.6-4.2 mm long; 0.7-0.8 length of adjacent fertile lemma; membranous; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Upper glume primary vein scabrous. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume surface asperulous. Upper glume apex acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile florets decreasing in size upwards. Fertile lemma ovate; 2-3 mm long; membranous; keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma midvein scaberulous. Lemma surface asperulous. Lemma apex acuminate. Palea elliptic; 0.9 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Palea keels scaberulous. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules 2; cuneate; fleshy.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; ellipsoid; laterally compressed; trigonous; 0.5-0.75 mm long. Embryo 0.3-0.4 length of caryopsis.
Distribution
Africa: west tropical, west-central tropical, northeast tropical, east tropical, southern tropical, south, and western Indian ocean.
Reference
Eragrostideae. FTEA.
[GB]

Common Names

English
Cross grass, Herringbone grass, Sickle grass

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora

    • Clayton, W.D., Vorontsova, M.S., Harman, K.T. and Williamson, H. (2006 onwards). GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora.
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Plants and People Africa

    • Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
    • © Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/