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BOTHRIOCHLOA Kuntze Bluestem
Plants hermaphroditic, caespitose or rhizomatous or stoloniferous, perennial. Culm erect or ascending or decumbent or
geniculate; internodes solid, glabrous or glaucous, terete; nodes glabrous or hairy or bearded. Leaves basal and cauline, not
distinctly distichous; sheaths terete, margins open; auricles absent; ligules membranous or a ciliate membrane; blades flat,
linear, lax, apex acuminate. Panicles of 2-several racemose branches, open or narrow or contracted, terminal (or a few
axillary inflorescences per culm), sheaths subtending inflorescence not inflated and spathe-like; primary branches unbranched or
rebranched; branches alternate or digitate or paired, spreading or ascending or appressed, aromatic or not aromatic,
branches hairy; pedicels with a longitudinal groove, hairy, dumb-bell shaped. Spikelets paired or ternate at each
inflorescence node, dissimilar or similar in size and shape, disarticulation below the glumes, dorsiventrally compressed,
sessile (or short pediceled) spikelets fertile, pedicellate (or short pediceled) spikelets staminate or sterile. Pedicellate
spikelets reduced, or staminate or sterile or well developed and sterile, awnless. Sessile spikelets perfect; first
glumes 2-keeled, gland-like depressions or pits present or not present; abaxial surface flat, smooth, chartaceous or coriaceous,
glabrous or hairy, awnless; second glumes length equal to first glumes; lower florets sterile or staminate; lemmas hyaline (very
small), entire, awnless; paleas absent; upper florets perfect, lemmas hyaline (small), entire, usually awned from the
apex; paleas present or absent, hyaline when present. Stamens 1 or 2 or 3; anthers brown or purple. Caryopses
dorsiventrally compressed, lanceolate or obovate or ovoid, brown or amber or yellow. Base chromosome number x=10.
A genus of about 35 species from the warmer parts of each continent. Many of these taxa are important
livestock forage in grasslands or savannahs. Some pasture species become weedy (B. ischaemum)
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