Australopyrum pectinatum (Labill.) Á.Löve, Feddes Repert. 95: 442 (1984).

Festuca pectinata Labill., Nov. Holl. Pl. 1: 21, t. 25 (1805); Triticum pectinatum (Labill.) R.Br., Prodr. 179 (1810), non M.Bieb. (1808); Agropyron pectinatum (Labill.) P.Beauv., Ess. Agrostogr. 102 (1812); Vulpia pectinata (Labill.) Nees, J. Bot. (Hooker) 2: 419 (1843). T: in capite Van-Dieman (Tas.); syn: MEL.
Triticum brownei Kunth, Révis. Gramin. 1: 145 (1829); Eremopyrum brownei (Kunth) Candargy, Monogr. tes Phyls ton Krthodon 62 (1901); Agropyron brownei (Kunth) Tzvelev, Novosti Sist. Vyssch. Rast. 10: 35 (1973); Triticum proiveni (brownii) Kunth in sched. MEL 626869

Vegetative form. Perennial, erect, caespitose. Leaves scattered along the culms. Culms (11.5-)15-31(-42) cm high, unbranched above, 2-3 noded. Mid-culm nodes glabrous (pigmented, sunken). Mid-culm internodes hollow, glabrous (although distally puberulous for c. 5 mm), terete. Young shoots intravaginal. Leaves auriculate. Auricles 0.5-1 mm long, glabrous (rarely sparsely pilose). Basal leaf sheaths not keeled, terete, densely puberulous to pilose, with margins free, membranous to chartaceous, smooth to ciliate. Ligule 0.2-0.5 mm long, hyaline to membranous, smooth, acute to truncate, entire. Collar glabrous. Leaf blades flat or involute (slightly), linear, 50-118(-161) mm long, (1-)2.5-3 mm wide; sparsely adaxially pilose; sparsely abaxially pilose; sparsely with margins ciliate, apices acute; convolute in bud. Prophyll 2 mm long.

Reproductive organization. Plants bisexual. Incomplete spikelets absent. Inflorescence of cleistogamous spikelets. Cleistogamous spikelets on the exserted inflorescence.

Inflorescence. Inflorescence a single spike to a raceme, open (spikelets not imbricate), oblong to ovate. Main inflorescence axis (115-)190-320 mm long. Peduncles 144-180 mm long, puberulous to pilose (retrorse). Rachides 23-37(-48) mm long, strap-like to subterete, puberulous to pilose (trichomes antrorse). (8-)14-17 spikelets on the rachis. Rachis angles puberulous to pilose (longer than on the dorsal surface). Spikelets distichous, divaricate.

Hermaphrodite (`perfect') spikelets. Hermaphrodite spikelets subsessile to pedicellate, 5-8(-12) mm long, laterally compressed, ovate to obovate, disarticulating as a separate unit, disarticulating above the glumes. Pedicels 0-0.8 mm long. Glumes two per spikelet (divergent, basiscopic), diverging from the spikelets, free, similar, equal in length, lateral to the rachis. Lower glume narrowly ovate, 5-6.8 mm long, 0.4-0.75 mm wide, chartaceous to cartilaginous, keeled (sometimes asymmetrically), long acuminate, muticous or mucronate to awned (shortly), margin hyaline to margin membranous, margin smooth to margin ciliate (trichomes localised); 3-5 veined, veins obscure to veins prominent (but slightly), midvein glabrous or midvein papillose (occasionally); intercostal regions glabrous; awn 2 mm long, glabrous (occasionally suffused with purple). Upper glume narrowly oblong to narrowly ovate, 6-7 mm long, 0.5-1.25 mm wide, chartaceous to cartilaginous, keeled (sometimes asymmetrically), long acuminate, muticous or mucronate to awned (shortly), margin hyaline to margin membranous, apically margin smooth to margin ciliolate (basally); (4-)5-7 veined, veins obscure or veins prominent (slightly), midvein glabrous or midvein papillose (occasionally); intercostal regions glabrous; awn 2 mm long, awn not twisted, smooth. Incomplete florets present, distal to the hermaphrodite florets. Hermaphrodite florets 3-4 per spikelet. Rachilla disarticulating between the florets, disarticulating directly below the florets, straight, scabrous, elongated between all florets, shortly apically prolonged. Callus present, blunt, 0.5 mm long, glabrous. Lemma similar in firmness to the glumes, narrowly oblong to narrowly ovate, 9-13 mm long, 1-1.75 mm wide, chartaceous to cartilaginous, acropetally keeled, long acuminate, entire, muticous or awned (shortly). Lemma margins ciliate. Lemma 7 veined. Lemma veins slightly confluent towards the apex, obscure, sparsely pilose, with the hairs on all the veins, with the hairs extending the length of the veins; intercostal regions pilose, the hairs over the entire dorsal surface. Awns 1, median. Median awn shorter than the body of the lemmas, 5 mm long, 1 veined, straight, glabrous. Palea fully developed, 1/2 the length of the lemmas, thinner than the lemmas to similar in texture to the lemmas, tightly clasped by the lemmas, narrowly ovate to narrowly elliptic, 6-7 mm long, 0.75-1.2 mm wide, membranous to chartaceous, 2-keeled, keels wingless, acuminate to acute, entire; 2 veined, acropetally veins scabrous to veins pilose; intercostal regions glabrous, or intercostal regions puberulous (minutely). Lodicules 2, free, hyaline, acute to truncate, lobed, with margin divisions lateral, apically ciliate, the hairs isolated. Stamens 3. Anthers 2 mm long. Ovary without a conspicuous apical appendage, pilose, with the hairs only at the apex. Styles 2, free to their bases. Distal incomplete florets 2-3 per spikelet, neuter, merely underdeveloped, shortly awned, epaleate.

Fruit. Fruit free from both lemma and palea, obovoid, slightly dorsiventrally compressed, 3-3.5 mm long, 1 mm wide, not grooved, glabrous and pilose, the hairs confined to a terminal tuft. Hilum 2.5-2.75 mm long, linear. Embryo 0.5 mm long, not waisted.

Abaxial leaf blade epidermis. Leaf anatomical data recorded.

Costal/intercostal zonation conspicuous; the intercostal zones bordering the midrib 6-15 cells wide; epidermis differentiated into long- and short-cells; long-cells similar in shape costally and intercostally to different in shape costally and intercostally (the costals narrower, tending to be more strictly rectangular); long-cells of similar wall thickness costally and intercostally.

Microhairs absent.

Crown cells present (or infrequent as in Pullen 11076, where only 1 seen), or absent. Prickles present; intercostal, costal, and marginal; generally antrorse; variable in size and form (sometimes including a few small hooks), or fairly uniform in size and form (mostly in the form of large, stout prickles which intergrade with macrohairs); of more than two types. Prickle bases not paired with a short-cell. Costal prickles along all zones; frequent in their files. Bases of the costal prickles longer than the width of an intercostal long-cell; barbs of the costal prickles more than twice as long as the bases. Intercostal prickles in the astomatal files, or adjacent to the costal zones and in the astomatal files. Bases of the intercostal prickles about as long as the width of an intercostal long-cell; shorter than the stomata to longer than the stomata; barbs of the intercostal prickles up to twice as long as the bases to more than twice as long as the bases. Macrohairs present; costal, or intercostal; intergraded with long prickles; unicellular; robust; with thickened walls; sparse but frequent; more than twice as long as an intercostal long-cell. Macrohair bases one-celled.

Intercostal long-cells fairly constant in shape. Mid-intercostal long-cells markedly elongated; rectangular (sometimes tending to be slightly fusiform); long-cell walls moderately undulating to tessellate; the undulations regular, or regular to irregular; end walls vertical; the intercostal long-cell walls associated with conspicuous pitting, or not conspicuously pitted; outer surfaces of intercostal long-cells not pitted. Papillae absent.

The costal zones all histologically similar; costal short-cells predominantly as cork/silica cell pairs. Costal cork-cells differing in shape from the silica cells; crescentic. Costal silica bodies present and perfectly developed; throughout the costal zones; more or less round.

Intercostal short-cells common; throughout the intercostal zones; paired; longitudinal width of intercostal cork-cell/silica-cell pairs 36-52 m. Unsilicified intercostal short-cells crescentic; walls straight (vertically), or sinuous (horizontally). Intercostal cork-cells tall-and-narrow, or crescentic. Intercostal silica bodies present and conspicuous; more or less round.

Stomata infrequent to common; absent from some intercostal zones (i.e. from those nearer the blade margins); restricted in distribution within intercostal zones; arranged in definite rows (or solitary). Stomatal rows in the widest intercostal zones 1 (rarely 2); bordering the costae. Stomata 24-39-45 m long; with guard-cells overlapped by the interstomatals, or having guard-cells flush with the interstomatals. Subsidiaries dome-shaped to parallel-sided. The domes low, or of medium height.

Photosynthetic pathway and related features. C3. XyMS+. The PBS sheaths of the primary lateral vascular bundles interrupted (by sclerenchyma, above and below). Mestome sheath single.

Transverse section of the leaf blade. Lamina mid-zone in transverse section open; rolled, or more or less flat to rolled; involute. Width of lamina across a primary vascular bundle 92-197 m. Lamina mid-zone in transverse section exhibiting adaxial ribs only. Adaxial furrows fairly deep; wide. Wavelength 92-216 m. Amplitude 74-138 m; depth of adaxial furrow/width of lamina 0.44. Adaxial furrows between all the vascular bundles. Adaxial ribs more or less constant in size; round topped to flat-topped; opposite all vascular bundles. Vascular bundles in the mid-lamina 17-27; 1 per rib. Abaxial furrows absent.

Midrib not pronounced in outline, or pronounced in outline; adaxially raised and rounded (to flattened); prominent abaxially; tissue layout similar to that of other primary vascular bundles. Vascular bundles in the mid-lamina region of the midrib 1. The median vascular bundle without a protoxylem cavity, or with a protoxylem cavity; with an enlarged protoxylem vessel; without sclerosed phloem. Midrib without colourless tissue adaxially; without lacunae. The lamina symmetrical on either side of the midrib.

Mesophyll chlorenchyma non-radiate; loosely packed. Mesophyll without lacunae; without any obvious adaxial palisade; without `circular cells'; not traversed by columns of colourless cells; without arm cells; without fusoids. Bulliforms present in discrete groups. The bulliform groups situated between vascular bundles (but fairly inconspicuous, and not in every furrow). The bulliform groups without contiguous colourless mesophyll cells; small (and weakly defined); simple, irregular, and of small cells. Abaxial epidermis without bulliform-like epidermal cells or groups, or of bulliform-like epidermal cells.

The major and minor vascular bundles alternating; outlines of primary vascular bundles more or less circular; primary vascular bundles centrally situated. Primary lateral vascular bundles with adaxial sclerenchyma; with abaxial sclerenchyma; the adaxial sclerenchyma forming girders; the abaxial sclerenchyma forming girders; the combined girders forming I's. Outlines of lower order vascular bundles more or less circular. Lower order vascular bundles centrally situated; with adaxial sclerenchyma, or without adaxial sclerenchyma; with abaxial sclerenchyma; the adaxial sclerenchyma forming girders; the abaxial sclerenchyma forming girders; the combined girders of the lower order vascular bundles forming I's; the smallest vascular bundles with sclerenchyma. The adaxial sclerenchyma of the mid-lamina all associated with vascular bundles.

Cytology. 2n = 14.

Common name. Comb Wheat-grass.

Distribution. Endemic. Tasmania, New South Wales, and Australian Capital Territory.

Ecology. Distribution by vegetation region: alpine heaths, temperate wet sclerophyll forests, and sub-alpine sub-humid grasslands. Flowers Dec.-April.

Vouchers. Specimens examined morphologically: L.G.Adams & M.P.Austin 2905: Kybean Ra. 1200 m (N.S.W.); 11.i.1973; Fr. Fl. Anat. 1540; CANB - N.T.Burbidge 2981: lower slopes of Mt Barrow (Tas.); 8.i.1949; Fl., Anat. 1541; CANB - N.T.Burbidge 3512: Duck R. on road to Cradle mt. (Tas.); 31.i.1949; Fl., Fr. Anat. 1542; CANB - A.M.Gill 111; Gourock Ra. S. of Parkers Gap (N.S.W.); 6.i.1975; Fl., Fr., Anat. 1543; CANB - R.Pullen 11076: c. 10 km S. of Captains flat on Gourock Ra. 1220 m (N.S.W.); 11.i.1984; Fl., Fr., Anat. 1544 & 1192; CANB - R.Pullen 11078: c. 3 km S. of Big Badja mt., c. 29 km NE. of Countegany, N. Kybean Ra. (N.S.W.); 12.i.1984; Fl.; CANB - R.Pullen 11077: c. 2 km S. of Big Badja mt. along Badja track, c. 30 km NE. of Countegany, Kybean Ra. (N.S.W.); 12.1.1984; Fl.; CANB - A.Moscal 1476: Fish R., Clummer Bluff (walls of Jerusalem, Tas.); 22.i.1983; Fl.; MEL, HO - Leichh. ?? s.n. MEL 626893; Mt Royal (N.S.W.); Fl.; MEL - ?? 1459: Thomas' Plain (Tas.); 23.iv.1879; Fr.; MEL - C.Stuart s.n. MEL 626865: St. Pauls R. (Tas.); 1849; Fr.; MEL - Sulivan, ?. and Coates, ?. 50: Mt Barrow, 4600' (Tas.); 1886; Fl., Fr.; MEL - V.D.L. s.n. MEL 626867: Tasmania; Fl., Fr.; MEL - C.Stuart 1544: South Port (Tas.); Fl., Fr.; MEL - J.H.Willis s.n. MEL 527422: NW. Cradle Mt. road at Daisy Dell, against old Post Office Stump; 11.i.1979; Fl.; MEL - Leichh. s.n. MEL 626860: Morton Bay, (?)Ashur Ck; 10.ix.1843; Fr.; MEL - O.F.Clarke s.n. MEL 1546489: 21.8 km S. of Deloraine, in gaps in rainforest (Tas.); 23.iv.1986; Fl.; MEL.

Material examined anatomically: L.G.Adams & M.P.Austin 2905, Kybean Ra., NSW. RSBS 1540; A.M.Gill 111, Gourock Ra., NSW. RSBS 1543; R.Pullen 11076, Captains Flat, Gourock Ra., NSW. RSBS 1544 & 1192; N.T.Burbidge 2981, Mt. Barrow, Tas. RSBS 1541; N.T.Burbidge 3512, Road to Cradle Mt., Tas. RSBS 1542; M.Henwood 205.

Classification. Triticodae; Triticeae.

In this treatment A. pectinatum is treated in the narrow sense of Vickery (1951) (but not considered to be restricted to Tasmania) and Löve (1984), and does not include A. retrofractum as proposed by Willis (1970) and Simon (1986). A. pectinatum and A. retrofractum are separable by a number of morphological and anatomical characters (see discussion under A. retrofractum). A population of smaller and less indumented individuals has been collected from the lower slopes of Mt. Barrow Tasmania.

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