Code
HEMAL
Growth form
Grass
Biological cycle
Vivacious
Habitat
Marshland / Terrestrial
Hemarthria altissima (Poir.) Stapf & C.E.Hubb.
synonym | Andropogon altissimus (Poir.) Raspail |
synonym | Andropogon fasciculatus Raspail, nom. illeg. |
synonym | Hemarthria capensis Trin. |
synonym | Hemarthria caudiculata Steud. |
synonym | Hemarthria compressa subsp. altissima (Poir.) Maire |
synonym | Hemarthria compressa var. fasciculata (Hack.) Keng |
synonym | Hemarthria fasciculata Kunth, nom. superfl. |
synonym | Hemarthria fasciculata subsp. altissima (Poir.) Maire ex Zangh. |
synonym | Hemarthria fasciculata var. gracilis Boiss. |
synonym | Lepturus fasciculatus Trin., nom. superfl. |
synonym | Lodicularia capensis (Trin.) Nees |
synonym | Lodicularia fasciculata P.Beauv., nom. superfl. |
synonym | Lodicularia peruviana Nees, nom. nud. |
synonym | Manisuris altissima (Poir.) Hitchc. |
synonym | Manisuris fasciculata (Hack.) Hitchc., nom. superfl. |
synonym | Rottboellia altissima Poir. |
synonym | Rottboellia articulata Thunb. ex Roem. & Schult., pro syn. |
synonym | Rottboellia compressa var. fasciculata Hack. |
synonym | Rottboellia fasciculata Lam., nom. superfl. |
synonym | Rottboellia heterochroa Gand. |
synonym | Rottboellia spathacea Ten. |
Creoles and pidgins; French-based |
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English |
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French |
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Malagasy |
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Global description
Hemarthria altissima is a vivacious stolonniferous grass with prostrate culms. The leaves are linear with membranociliated ligule. The inflorescence is constituted of fasciculate cylindrical racemes whose rachis breaks up into irregular segments. The pedicelled spikelets are male, linear, the sessile spikelets are fertile, lanceolate and compressed, of the same length as the pedicellate spikelets. Sessile spikelet is formed of a sterile basal flower and a fertile superior flower.
General habit
Vivacious grass creeping and strongly stolonniferous, developing into spots. Prostrate culms up to 100 to 250 cm long.
Underground system
Root fasciculated at the base of the plant and many adventitious roots developing at the nodes in contact with the ground.
Culm
The culm is prostrate, branched, 100 to 250 cm long, it is knee and ascending at the end. It is compressed, with a diameter of 2 to 4 mm. The knots are glabrous.
Leaf
The sheath is open, glabrous but ciliated on the margins. The ligule is short, membranous with ciliate top. The blade is flat or folded, linear, 5 to 20 cm long and 3 to 5 mm wide. Prefoliation is folded. The faces are hairless, the margin is smooth with some long hairs at the base. The apex is acute and the base is the same width as the sheath. The leaves turn red brown when drying.
Inflorescence
The inflorescence consists of erect lateral and terminal racemes outgoing well from the sheaths of leaves. They are solitary or fasciculated by 2 to 4 linear sub-cylindrical slightly compressed laterally, and slightly arched. They are hairless, 5 to 12 cm long and 2 to 3 mm in diameter. The rachis is disarticulate in irregular segments, flattened with a smooth margin. The internodes are cuneiform. Article and pedicel are welded into a piece that forms a cavity in which the sessile spikelet is housed.
Spikelet
The spikelets are in pairs, one pedicelled is male, the other sessile is fertile. The sessile spikelet is lanceolate, dorsally compressed, 5 to 7 mm long, glabrous with triangular callus. Base truncated and attached obliquely. Glumes are dissimilar, slightly longer than lemmas and paleas. The lower glume is lanceolate, herbaceous with two winged keels, visible intercarenal nerves, the apex is emarginate or obtuse. The upper glume is oblong, membranous, not carinated but trinerved with obtuse or acute apex. The lower floret is neutral, consisting of an oblong hyaline lemma with 2 veins, mutic, the palea is absent. The upper floret is fertile, shorter than the glumes, consisting of an oblong, hyaline lemma without keel or vein, obtuse apex and a hyaline palea. The pedicelled spikelet is the same length as the sessile one but narrower, consisting of two herbaceous glumes with acute apex and two lemmas hyaline shorter than the glumes. At maturity, the two spikelets fall together with the fragment of rachis which is disarticulated.
Grain
The grain is oblong to obovoid, 2 mm long, reddish in color and slightly dorsally compressed.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
South Africa: It flowers and fruits from October to June.
West Indies: Hemarthria altissima flowers and fruits from September to January but grows vegetatively all year round.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Hemarthria altissima is a vivacious species. It multiplies abundantly vegetatively from its prostrate stems and quickly forms large spots. It also reproduces by seeds.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Hemarthria altissima is a species of warm temperate and tropical regions of the world.
South Africa: A ruderal species found in pasture or weed crops in wetlands. It is sometimes dominant.
West Indies: Species introduced as fodder and now naturalized.
Ivory Coast: A species that grows in cool, wet, or even marshy places (lowland, creek, low river alluvial). Resistant to drought, it stays green in dry river beds during the dry season.
Reunion: Hemarthria altissima grows in the highlands of the island, especially between 500 and 900 m altitude in the upper parts of St André, Ste Suzanne, at the entrance of the Plaine des Palmistes. It develops as ruderal on the edges of road and path, on wet ground. It is also a weed of sugarcane.
Madagascar: Common species in the areas of hot and humid East or subhumid climate of the Center. Uncommon in the West and absent in the South which is too dry. It grows in shallows, creeks, and low alluvial, but not swampy.
Mauritius: It is a weed of poorly maintained sugarcane fields, it is also found in forest around 600 m altitude in Curepipe, Mare aux Vacoas, Ferney.
Niger: Species distributed in southern Niger where it grows on soils subject to flooding and bordering ponds.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Origin
Hemarthria altissima is native to the old world (Africa, Asia).
Worldwide distribution
It is present in tropical and southern Africa, in the Indian Ocean, in Asia (Arabia, China, India, Burma, Vietnam, Borneo, Malaysia), also in southern Europe (Italy, Turkey). It has been introduced in tropical America and the West Indies.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Local harmfulness
Reunion: Hemarthria altissima is a sugar cane weed above 600 m altitude that can form dense stands because of its high vegetative multipication.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Food: In Lesotho, children consume raw rhizomes.
Livestock feed: Hemarthria altissima is an excellent forage plant, with low lignification and quite productive. It bears a high stock of livestock and can be valuable pasture in the lowland wetlands.
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
- Bosser, J., I. K. Fergusson and C. Soopramanien (Mult. an.). Flore des Mascareignes. La Réunion, Maurice, Rodrigues, MSIRI, IRD, Kew.
- Clayton, W.D., Vorontsova, M.S., Harman, K.T. and Williamson, H. (2006 onwards). GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora. http://www.kew.org/data/grasses-db.html. [accessed 12 December 2019.
- Poilecot, P. (1999). Les Poaceae du Niger. Genève, Suisse, Conservatoire et jardin botaniques de Genève.
- Poilecot, P. (1995). Les Poaceae de Côte-d'Ivoire. Genève, Suisse, Conservatoire et jardin botaniques de Genève.
- Gibbs Russell, G. E., L. Watson, M. Koekemoer, L. Smook, N. P. Barker, H. M. Anderson and M. J. Dallwitz (1991). Grasses of Southern Africa. An identification manual with keys, descriptions, distributions, classification and automated identification and information retrieval from computerized data. South Africa, National Botanic Garden - Botanical research Institute.
- Fournet, J. (2002). Flore illustrée des phanérogames de Guadeloupe et de Martinique. Montpellier, France, Cirad, Gondwana éditions.
- Bosser, J. (1969). Graminées des paturages et des cultures à Madagascar. Paris, France, ORSTOM.
- Bosser, J., I. K. Fergusson and C. Soopramanien (Mult. an.). Flore des Mascareignes. La Réunion, Maurice, Rodrigues, MSIRI, IRD, Kew.
- Clayton, W.D., Vorontsova, M.S., Harman, K.T. and Williamson, H. (2006 onwards). GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora. http://www.kew.org/data/grasses-db.html. [accessed 12 December 2019.
- Poilecot, P. (1999). Les Poaceae du Niger. Genève, Suisse, Conservatoire et jardin botaniques de Genève.
- Poilecot, P. (1995). Les Poaceae de Côte-d'Ivoire. Genève, Suisse, Conservatoire et jardin botaniques de Genève.
- Gibbs Russell, G. E., L. Watson, M. Koekemoer, L. Smook, N. P. Barker, H. M. Anderson and M. J. Dallwitz (1991). Grasses of Southern Africa. An identification manual with keys, descriptions, distributions, classification and automated identification and information retrieval from computerized data. South Africa, National Botanic Garden - Botanical research Institute.
- Fournet, J. (2002). Flore illustrée des phanérogames de Guadeloupe et de Martinique. Montpellier, France, Cirad, Gondwana éditions.
- Bosser, J. (1969). Graminées des paturages et des cultures à Madagascar. Paris, France, ORSTOM.
Herbarium pictures ReCOLNAT: https://explore.recolnat.org/search/botanique/simplequery=Hemarthria%2520altissima
Attributions | |
Contributors | |
Status | UNDER_CREATION |
Licenses | CC_BY |
References |
Root | Root |
Kingdom | Plantae |
Phylum | Tracheophyta |
Class | Liliopsida |
Order | Poales |
Family | Poaceae |
Genus | Hemarthria |
Species | Hemarthria altissima (Poir.) Stapf & C.E.Hubb. |