Isachne

Scientific name

Isachne R. Br.

Common names

swamp millet

Family

Poaceae

Similar genera

Luziola and many grasses

Native distribution

throughout the tropics, mainly Asia

Species cultivated

occasionally offered:

Isachne confusa Ohwi

I. globosa (Thunb.) Kuntze

Adventive distribution

not known

Weed status

not weedy

Habit

amphibious, semi-aquatic, floating or emergentemergent:
(adj) (syn. emersed) with parts raised out of the water; extending up out of the water
grass

Brief description

Rhizomatous rhizomatous:
(adj) possessing rhizomes
or stoloniferous; culms ascending to erect, often branched above, nodes glabrousglabrous:
(adj) without hairs or scales
, or pubescentpubescent:
(adj) (1) covered with short, soft hairs; (2) bearing hairs
, lower nodes often rooting. Liguleligule:
(n) (1) a strap-shaped structure; (2) an often thin, membranous or hairy structure projecting from the top of the leaf sheath in grasses and a few other families; (3) the flattened part of the ray corolla in the Asteraceae
a fringe of hairs, or absent; auriclesauricles:
(n) an ear-shaped lobe or appendage at the base of some leaves and flower petals
absent; sheath shorter than internodes, glabrousglabrous:
(adj) without hairs or scales
or pilose, marginmargin:
(n) edge; rim
typically ciliateciliate:
(adj) with a marginal fringe of stiff hairs
; bladeblade:
(n) (syn. lamina) the flat, expanded part of a leaf, frond, or petal (excluding, e.g., the petiole)
narrowly lanceolatelanceolate:
(adj) lance-shaped; widest point below the middle, tapering to the apex
to ovateovate:
(adj) egg-shaped in outline; generally with the broad end at or near the base
, firm, glabrousglabrous:
(adj) without hairs or scales
; base cordatecordate:
(adj) heart-shaped; in the form of two rounded lobes
or rounded, amplexicaulineamplexicauline:
(adj) (of leaf bases) clasping the stem
; apexapex:
(n) the point farthest from the point of attachment; the tip (often pointed)
acuteacute:
(adj) tapering to a sharp, pointed apex with more or less straight sides; broader than acuminate; forming an angle of less than 90 degrees
or acuminateacuminate:
(adj) tapering gradually to a point and forming more or less concave sides
; veins prominent, cross venationvenation:
(n) the arrangement of veins in a leaf
absent. Inflorescenceinflorescence:
(n) the arrangement of flowers on the floral axis
a terminalterminal:
(adj) at the apex
paniclepanicle:
(n) an indeterminate, branched (often much-branched) inflorescence; the ultimate units may be of a different inflorescence type
, open, or rarely contracted; exsertedexserted:
(adj) projecting beyond, sticking out or protruding
, or basally embraced by subtending leaf; ellipticelliptic:
(adj) in the form of an ellipse (oval)
to ovateovate:
(adj) egg-shaped in outline; generally with the broad end at or near the base
, or pyramidal in outline; primary branches stiff, spreading; branchlets capillarycapillary:
(adj) slender, hair-like
. Spikelets solitary; fertilefertile:
(adj) producing viable seed, spores, or pollen; capable of reproducing
spikelets pedicelled, length variable; ellipticelliptic:
(adj) in the form of an ellipse (oval)
to globoseglobose:
(adj) spherical or nearly so
, dorsally compressed; green or purplish; florets 2, both fertilefertile:
(adj) producing viable seed, spores, or pollen; capable of reproducing
or 1 sterilesterile:
(adj) lacking male and/or female reproductive parts; not producing fruit, seed, pollen, spores, etc.
.

Natural habitat

moist to wet open places, in or near shallow water, marshes, swamps, creeks, lagoons, streams, rivers, lakes, in seasonally inundated floodplains; rice fields

Additional comments

Of the nearly 100 species within Isachne, the majority are amphibiousamphibious:
(adj) of a plant able to live on land or in water
. Several species, in addition to those cultivated, are regularly found in inundated to permanently wet habitats: Isachne albens Trin., I. guineensis Stapf & C.E.Hubb., I. lisboae Hook.f., I. myosotis Nees, I. polygonoides (Lam.) Döll, and I. pulchella Roth.

Isachne globosa is widely known in the trade as "purple bamboo".

Spikelets are essential for accurate identification.