Alopecurus myosuroides Huds., Fl. Angl. Ed. 2, 23 (1762).

A. agrestis L.,

Illustrated in: Hubbard (1954) 300.

Vegetative form. Annual, erect or geniculate, caespitose. Leaves mostly basal. Culms 18-70 cm high, unbranched above, 2-3 noded. Mid-culm nodes glabrous, exposed, not pigmented (brown), constricted. Mid-culm internodes hollow, glabrous or scabrous, terete (?). Young shoots intravaginal. Leaves non-auriculate. Basal leaf sheaths not keeled, terete (flag sheath slightly inflated), glabrous, with the veins equally striate, with margins free, membranous, smooth. Ligule 1-5 mm long, not lobed, decurrent, membranous, smooth, truncate, dentate, abaxially glabrous or hairy. Collar glabrous. Distinct callus at blade-sheath junction absent. Leaf blades joining the sheath gradually, flat, linear, 30-55 mm long, 2-8 mm wide; adaxially scabrous (on the veins), shallowly grooved; abaxially scabrous (on the veins), with the veins equally striate; with margins scabrous, apices acute or apices abruptly pointed, hooded (?); convolute in bud. Prophyll 10-15 mm long, the keels puberulous.

Reproductive organization. Plants bisexual. Rudimentary spikelets absent. Incomplete spikelets absent. Hermaphrodite florets protogynous. Inflorescence of chasmogamous spikelets.

Inflorescence. Inflorescence a panicle, pallid and green, erect, contracted (narrow and spike-like, spikelets dense), 4-5 mm wide, oblong, symmetrical, fully exserted. Main inflorescence axis 110-120 mm long. Peduncles 80 mm long, glabrous or scabrous, ridged. Rachides 30-35(-120) mm long, terete, glabrous. Pulvini absent. Primary inflorescence branches glabrous; solitary (partially fused to the rachis), not branched at the base, spreading, spiral, without spikelets inserted at the base. Spikelets 1-2 on a typical ultimate inflorescence branch, on first order branches, erect, spreading.

Hermaphrodite (`perfect') spikelets. Hermaphrodite spikelets subsessile or pedicellate, 4.5-5.5(-7) mm long, laterally compressed, oblong or elliptic, disarticulating as a separate unit, disarticulating below the glumes. Pedicels 0.1-0.8 mm long, erect, thick, glabrous, straight. Glumes two per spikelet, basally connate (in the lower 1/3-1/2), similar, equal in length or subequal (the lateral faces of each glume of unequal width), about equalling the florets, equalling the proximal lemma. Lower glume ovate (excluding wing), 4.5-5.5(-7) mm long, 1.3-1.6 mm wide, carnose, strongly keeled, with a conspicuous keel-wing (on the upper 2/3s, narrower at apex than base), acute or obtuse (oblique), entire, muticous, margin ciliolate; 3 veined, veins prominent (and green), basally the midvein pilose and midvein hirsute (towards the apex, the hairs at the base dense, white, short; the lateral veins scaberulous); intercostal regions papillose to intercostal regions scaberulous. Upper glume oblong to ovate, 4.5-5.7(-7) mm long, 1.4-1.6 mm wide, carnose, strongly keeled, with a conspicuous keel-wing (on the upper 2/3s), acute, entire, muticous, margin ciliolate; 3 veined, veins prominent (and green), basally the midvein pilose and midvein hirsute (towards the apex, the hairs at the base dense, white, short; the lateral veins scaberulous); intercostal regions papillose to intercostal regions scaberulous. Rudimentary florets absent. Incomplete florets absent. Hermaphrodite florets 1 per spikelet. Rachilla not apically prolonged. Callus absent. Lemma less firm than the glumes, laterally compressed, ovate, 4.6-5 mm long, 1.4-1.6 mm wide, membranous, keeled (near apex), acute to obtuse, entire; awned. Lemma margins connate (lower 1/2); ciliolate (at apex). Lemma 5-7 veined (?). Lemma veins not confluent apically, obscure, glabrous; intercostal regions papillose, the hairs only at the apex. Awns 1, median (weak, particularly at base). Median awn much longer than the body of the lemmas, 9-12 mm long, 1 veined, dorsal, arising from the lower half of the lemma (near the base), outwardly curved or geniculate (weakly), column twisted (slightly), the bristle scabrous. Palea absent. Lodicules absent. Stamens 3. Anthers 3-3.5 mm long, yellow, basally 2-lobed (1/4 of the anther length). Ovary glabrous. Styles 2, apical, fused.

Fruit. Fruit not seen.

Cytology. 2n = 14 (European).

Common name. Slender Foxtail.

Distribution. Introduced. Tasmania, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, Queensland, and South Australia. World distribution: Western Eurasia, USSR and Mediterranean.

Ecology. Mesophytic; in open habitats. Weed of cultivated or disturbed ground.

Vouchers. Specimens examined morphologically: A.C.T.: C.S.I.R. plots, Canberra, 13 Nov. 1931, C.P.I. 2448 (CANB). Tas.: 'Merriworth', near Tea Tree, in barley crop, 21 Nov. 1988, K.Gangell (HO).

Notes. Economic importance: minor weed species.

Classification. Pooideae; Poodae; Aveneae; section Pseudophalaris Tzvelev, Nov. Syst. Pl. Vasc. (Leningrad) 8: 12-22 (1971).

References. Morphology: Hubbard (1954) 301; Clarke in Tutin ed. (1980) 5: 242; Morris (1991) 102; Jacobs & Hastings in Harden ed. (1993) 4: 567. Cytology: Clarke in Tutin ed. (1980) 4: 242; Hubbard (1954) 301. Illustrations: alopec01.gif

Cite this publication as:
C.M. Weiller, M.J. Henwood, J. Lenz and L. Watson (1995 onwards). `Pooideae (Poaceae) in Australia - Descriptions and Illustrations'. URL http://muse.bio.cornell.edu/delta/
Dallwitz (1980) and Dallwitz, Paine and Zurcher (1993) should also be cited.

References and Acknowledgements