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Info
Subfamily: Panicoideae
Genus etymology: Digitaria = "having fingers" [Latin] refering to the inflorescence structure
Species etymology: radicosa = "with many roots" [Latin] refering to its habit
Photosynthetic type: C4 (warm season)
Nativity: naturalized - accidental
First recorded in Hawaiʻi: 1909
Map
Inflorescence
Plant
Habit
Spikelets
Collar
Description
Habit: Annual. Culms rambling; slender; 20-40 cm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane. Leaf-blades lanceolate; 2-7 cm long; 2-5 mm wide. Inflorescences: Inflorescence composed of racemes. Racemes 2-4; digitate; unilateral; 3-9 cm long. Rhachis narrowly winged; angular; smooth on margins. Spikelet packing 0.5 their length apart. Spikelets in pairs. Fertile spikelets pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels unequal. Spikelets: Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 2.5-3 mm long; falling entire. Fertile Spikelets: Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 2.5-3 mm long; falling entire. Glumes: Glumes two; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet; thinner than fertile lemma. Lower glume ovate; 0.1-0.2 mm long; 0.05-0.1 length of spikelet; hyaline; without keels; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse. Upper glume lanceolate; 0.33-0.5 length of spikelet; membranous; without keels; 3 -veined. Upper glume surface pubescent. Upper glume apex acute. Florets: Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret elliptic; 1 length of spikelet; membranous; 5(-7) -veined; with unevenly spaced veins (laterals contiguous); pubescent; eciliate on margins, or ciliate on margins; acute. Fertile lemma lanceolate; 2.5-3 mm long; cartilaginous; much thinner on margins; yellow, or light brown; without keel. Lemma margins flat; covering most of palea. Lemma apex acute. Palea cartilaginous. Distribution: Africa: west-central tropical, east tropical, and western Indian ocean. Asia-temperate: China and eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: India, Indo-China, Malesia, and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia. Pacific: southwestern, south-central, northwestern, and north-central
(Description source: Clayton, W.D., Vorontsova, M.S., Harman, K.T. and Williamson, H. (2006 onwards). GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora. Available at https://powo.science.kew.org )