Perotis patens Gand.

Global description

Perotis patens is an annual grass. Young shoots are prostrate, radiating around the base and then become erect, reaching 70 cm high. The sheath is glabrous with some stiff hairs up the margin. The ligule is membranous, truncate. The leaves are simple, alternate, slightly short (1.5 to 4.5 cm long), glaucous, oval acute to linear, the two sides glabrous and the margin lined with tuberculate stiff hairs. The inflorescence is a narrow cylindrical spike, hairy, reaching up to 28 cm long, yellowish to purplish in colour. The spikelets are solitary, lanceolate, narrow, 2.5 to 3.5 mm long, and extensively awned.
 
First leaves
 
The first leaves are simple to alternate with rolled prefoliation. The ligule is membranous, truncate. The leaf lamina is glaucous green, oval to elliptical, 1.5 to 3 cm long, and 3 to 10 mm wide, shortly acuminate top, and margin strongly ciliated. The bases of the first leaves are imbricated within each other.
 
General habit
 
Annual species with prostrate stems at first, radiating then quickly geniculate ascendingly, measuring 30 to 75 cm high.
 
Underground system
 
Fibrous roots
 
Culm
 
Culm is cylindrical, glabrous, slender, geniculate ascending.
 
Leaf
 
Leaves are simple, alternate. The sheath is cylindrical, glabrous, with ciliate margin in the upper part. The ligule is quite short, membranous, truncate to serrated. The lamina is short, 1.5 to 4, 5 cm long and from 3 to 12 mm wide, glaucous green in color. The apex is shortly acuminate, the base slightly rounded, both sides are glabrous, the margin has long, straight stiff hairs with tuberculate base. The leaves are sometimes transversely striped with violet or purple stripes.
 
Inflorescence
 
The inflorescence is a cylindrical spike, narrow and extensively hairy, of very variable length but can reach up to 30 cm long. It is well clear of the sheath of the last leaf. It is yellowish to purplish in colour.
 
Spikelet
 
The spikelets are solitary, numerous and sub-sessile, narrowly lanceolate, 2.5 to 3.5 mm long, extensively awned, very briefly pedicellate, with short and obtuse basal callus. The glumes are equal, of the length of the spikelet, a little compressed, uninervate, scabrous, ending with a thin edge of 8 to 18 mm long. Flower is smaller than the glumes, lemma hyaline uninervate, narrow lanceolate, 1.5 mm long. Palea very small, hyaline, without venation.
 
Grain
 
The fruit is a grain (caryopsis) extensively fusiform, 1.2 to 1.4 mm long.

Worlwide distribution

Perotis patens occurs in tropical and southern Africa, and in Madagascar.

https://www.gbif.org/fr/species/5678853