Achnatherum splendens

(Trin.) Nevski
Common names: Jiji grass
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 24. Treatment on page 117.
Please click on the illustration for a higher resolution version.
Illustrator: Cindy Roché

Copyright: Utah State University

Plants cespitose, not rhizomatous. Culms 30-250 cm tall, 2-3 mm thick, glabrous, smooth; nodes 1-3. Basal sheaths glabrous or the margins ciliate, becoming fibrous with age; collars glabrous, including the sides; basal ligules 1-3 mm, membranous, glabrous, truncate to acute; upper ligules to 12 mm, acute; blades to 60 cm long, 2-5 mm wide, abaxial surfaces smooth, adaxial surfaces scabrous. Panicles 12-50 cm long, 4-15 cm wide; branches ascending, usually whorled, longest branches 2.5-15 cm, with 15+ spikelets. Glumes 4-8.5 mm, acute; lower glumes 0-1.7 mm shorter than the upper glumes; upper glumes 0.5-0.9 mm wide; florets 4-7.2 mm, fusiform; calluses 0.3-0.5 mm, blunt; lemmas evenly hairy, hairs at midlength to 1 mm, apical hairs to 1.5 mm, apical lobes 0.5-1 mm; awns 5-12 mm, readily deciduous, indistinctly once-geniculate or flexuous, scabrous; paleas slightly shorter than the lemmas, pubescent; anthers 3-4.5 mm, dehiscent, penicillate, yellow. Caryopses 2-4 mm, fusiform. 2n =42, 48.

Discussion

Achnatherum splendens is native from the Caspian Sea to eastern Siberia and south through central Asia to the inner ranges of the Himalayas. According to Freitag (1985), it is a common and typical plant of cold, semidesert regions, growing in groundwater-influenced habitats at elevations of 2100-3800 m. It is rarely eaten by grazing animals, so that it increases in abundance in overgrazed meadows. It is being considered as a potential soil binder for areas in Asia that are too cold for Chrysopogon zizanioides (L.) Roberty A.S. Hitchcock (1951) reported A. splendens to be "sparingly cultivated" in the United States. In view of Freitag's comments, its cultivation in North America should be discouraged.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"decumbent" is not a number."prolonged" is not a number."thick" is not a number."prolonged" is not a number.

... more about "Achnatherum splendens"
membranous +  and scarious +
penicillate +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.45 cm4.5 mm <br />0.0045 m <br />) +
awned +, bifid +, bilobed +  and entire +
rounded +  and acute +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br />) +
Mary E. Barkworth +
(Trin.) Nevski +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
flexuous +
subterminal +  and eccentric +
usually scabrous +  and scabridulous +
once-geniculate +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
intravaginal +, extravaginal +, branching +  and basal +
swelling +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (60 cm600 mm <br />0.6 m <br />) +
not evident +
involute +, convolute +  and flat +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
flexuous +  and straight +
spikelike +
well-developed +
0.03 cm0.3 mm <br />3.0e-4 m <br /> (0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br />) +
Jiji grass +
branching +  and not branching +
perennial +  and annual +
30 cm300 mm <br />0.3 m <br /> (250 cm2,500 mm <br />2.5 m <br />) +
intravaginal +  and basal +
10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br /> (250 cm2,500 mm <br />2.5 m <br />) +
not woody +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
Mont. +, Oreg. +, Ariz. +, Idaho +, Wash. +, S.Dak. +, Tex. +, Calif. +, Colo. +, Wyo. +, Utah +, N.Mex. +, Nev. +, Nebr. +, Alaska +, Kans. +, N.Dak. +, Okla. +, Alta. +, B.C. +, Man. +, Sask. +, Yukon +, Ark. +  and Minn. +
1/5 +  and 1/3 +
liquid +, soft +  and hard +
capillary +
pistillate +  and staminate +
sometimes longer +
fusiform +
4mm +  and 7.2mm +
1-10-veined +
subtending +
0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br /> (0.85 cm8.5 mm <br />0.0085 m <br />) +
membranous +
divergent +  and distributed +
uncinate +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
solid +  and hollow +
basally concentrated +  and evenly distributed +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br />) +
ovate +, rectangular +  and lanceolate +
stiffly membranous +  and coriaceous +
pubescent +  and glabrous +
membranous +
membranous +
inconspicuous +
not lobed +
2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br /> (15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br />) +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.17 cm1.7 mm <br />0.0017 m <br />) +
concealed +  and prominent +
1 +  and 3 +
2 +  and 1 +
pubescent +  and glabrous +
well-developed +
not keeled +
reduced +
12cm +  and 50cm +
4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br /> (15 cm150 mm <br />0.15 m <br />) +
dry +  and fleshy +
not prolonged +
1 +  and 60 +
unisexual +  and bisexual +
laterally compressed +  and terete +
1 +  and 3 +
simple +  and compound +
Gramineae +
Achnatherum splendens +
Achnatherum +
species +
membranous +
0.5mm +  and 0.9mm +
inconspicuous +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
plant +  and cespitose +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +