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Info
Subfamily: Chloridoideae
Genus etymology: Eragrostis = "love grass" [Greek] unclear origin, other etymologies such as "early grass" or "very grass" have also been speculated
Species etymology: grandis = "tall" [Latin] refering to the habit
Photosynthetic type: C4 (warm season)
Nativity: endemic
Map
Inflorescence
Plant
Habit
Spikelets
Description
Perennials; culms forming large tufts, erect, up to 20 dm tall, up to 1 cm in diameter at base, glabrous. Sheaths glabrous, pilose or glabrous at throat; ligule a dense row of hairs 0.2-0.4 mm long; blades flat, usually involute toward the slender apex, usually 5-10 mm wide, upper surface scabrous, lower surface glabrous. Inflorescences paniculate, open, oblong, up to 50 cm long, the branches widely spaced, fasciculate, ascending, usually bearing spikelets nearly to base, axils pilose, the axis and branches smooth in lower part, scabrous in upper part; spikelets 5-10-flowered, compressed, 5-9 mm long, rachilla internodes ca. 0.8 mm long, scabrous, lateral pedicels ca. | mm long; glumes 2.5-3 mm long, scabrous, apex acuminate; lemmas loosely imbricate, exposing rachilla, ca. 3 mm long, glabrous, keel scaberulous, apex acuminate or acute; palea slightly shorter than lemma, keel scabrous-ciliate. Caryopsis reddish brown, ovoid to oblong, trigonous, 0.5-1.5 mm long. [2n = 44*.]
(Description source: O’Connor, P.J. 1990. Poaceae, pp. 1481–1604. In: Wagner W.L., Herbst D.R. & Sohmer S.H. (eds.)., Manual of the flowering plant of Hawaiʻi. Vol. 2. University of Hawaii Press & Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu )