Melinis

P. Beauv.
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 25. Treatment on page 490.
 TaxonIllustrator 
FNA25 P184B Melinis pg 491.jpegMelinis minutiflora
Melinis repens
Karen Klitz
Linda A. Vorobik
Karen Klitz
Linda A. Vorobik

Plants annual or perennial; habit various. Culms 20-150 cm, erect, decumbent, or prostrate. Sheaths open; ligules of hairs or membranous and ciliate. Inflorescences terminal, simple pani¬cles or panicles of spikelike primary branches, usually with capillary secondary branches and pedicels; disarticulation below the glumes, sometimes also below the upper florets, the upper florets then falling first. Spikelets with 2 florets. Lower glumes present or absent, 0-1-veined, unawned; upper glumes equaling or exceeding the florets, sometimes gibbous basally, 5-7-veined, emarginate to bilobed, awned or unawned; lower florets staminate or sterile; lower lem¬mas similar to the upper glumes, but not gibbous; upper florets bisexual, laterally compressed; upper lemmas subcoriaceous, glabrous, smooth, unawned; upper paleas resembling the upper lemmas; lodicules 2, fleshy or membranous, x = 9.

Distribution

Puerto Rico, Md., N.Mex., Tex., La., Virgin Islands, Calif., Pacific Islands (Hawaii), Ga., N.C., Ariz., Fla.

Discussion

Melinis is an African and western Asian genus of 22 species that grow in savannahs, open grasslands, and disturbed places. Two species have become established in the Flora region.

Rhynchelytrum Nees has traditionally been treated as a separate genus, with the number of veins being the diagnostic character. Zizka (1988) showed that this separation was artificial; consequently the older generic name, Melinis, is now applied to species that used to be included in Rhynchelytrum.

Key

1 Glumes and pedicels glabrous, scabridulous; lower florets without paleas Melinis minutiflora
1 Glumes, and usually the pedicels, with hairs to 7 mm long; lower florets with paleas > 2
2 Leaf sheaths not strongly overlapping, blades not rolled Melinis repens
2 Strongly overlapping leaf sheaths, rolled blades, and usually perennial Melinis nerviglumis

"decumbent" is not a number.

... more about "Melinis"
anatomy +  and kranz +
J.K. Wipff +
P. Beauv. +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
divergent +  and parallel +
intravaginal +, extravaginal +, branching +  and basal +
swelling +
membranous +
disarticulating +  and pseudopetiolate +
non-radiate +  and radiate +
usually linear +  and lanceolate occasionally ovate +
spikelike +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
not developed +
terete +  and compressed +
sometimes longer +
branched +  and solid +
prostrate +  and decumbent +
20 cm200 mm <br />0.2 m <br /> (150 cm1,500 mm <br />1.5 m <br />) +
Puerto Rico +, Md. +, N.Mex. +, Tex. +, La. +, Virgin Islands +, Calif. +, Pacific Islands (Hawaii) +, Ga. +, N.C. +, Ariz. +  and Fla. +
capillary +
germination +
pistillate +  and staminate +
sometimes longer +
compressed +  and terete +
shorter or longer +
subtending +
unequal +
membranous +
uncinate +
bracteate +  and ebracteate +
solid +  and hollow +
cauline +  and basal +
coriaceous +
membranous +
inconspicuous +
membranous +  and fleshy +
not gibbous +
complex +  and simple +
concealed +  and prominent +
2 +  and 1 +
subterranean +
dry +  and fleshy +
anderson1991a +, zizka1988a +  and zizka1990a +
in triplets +  and paired +
1 +  and 60 +
unisexual +  and bisexual +
compressed +  and terete +
1 +  and 3 +
fused +  and free +
2 +  and 3 +
dome--shaped +  and triangular +
Gramineae +
Melinis +
Poaceae tribe Paniceae +
membranous +
unawned +, awned +, emarginate +  and bilobed +
exceeding the florets +  and equaling +
subcoriaceous +
perennial +  and annual +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +
dioecious +, monoecious +  and synoecious +