Lagurus ovatus L., Sp. Pl. 1: 81 (1753).

T: Habitat in Italia, Gallia, Sicilia, Lusitania

Illustrated in: Hubbard (1976) p. 288.

Vegetative form. Annual, erect or geniculate, caespitose. Leaves scattered along the culms. Culms 17-90 cm high, branched above or unbranched above, 2-5 noded. Mid-culm nodes densely hairy, exposed, not pigmented, constricted. Mid-culm internodes hollow, antrorsely pubescent (immediately below the node, occasionally pigmented), terete. Young shoots intravaginal. Leaves non-auriculate. Basal leaf sheaths not keeled, terete (flag leaf inflated), densely pubescent, with the veins equally striate, with margins connate, toward the base, membranous (one side only), smooth. Ligule 1-1.7(-3) mm long, not lobed, decurrent, membranous, smooth or ciliolate, obtuse or truncate, entire or lacerate, abaxially hairy. Collar puberulous. Distinct callus at blade-sheath junction absent. Leaf blades joining the sheath gradually, flat, linear or narrowly ovate, 35-150(-200) mm long, 2.5-15 mm wide; adaxially pubescent, not grooved; abaxially pubescent, with the veins equally striate; with margins ciliolate, apices acute, flat (but margins inrolled, at least when dry); convolute in bud. Prophyll 15 mm long, pubescent.

Reproductive organization. Plants bisexual. Rudimentary spikelets absent. Incomplete spikelets present. Hermaphrodite florets homogamous (?). Inflorescence of chasmogamous spikelets.

Inflorescence. Inflorescence densely a panicle, pallid or purple (slightly, awns and glume veins sometimes pigmented), erect, densely contracted, 10-20 mm wide, ovate or elliptic or globose, symmetrical, partially exserted or fully exserted. Main inflorescence axis 80-450 mm long. Peduncles 70-395 mm long, glabrous or puberulous (densely, hairs spreading), ridged. Rachides 8-55 mm long, terete (?), glabrous. Rachis angles glabrous. Pulvini absent. Primary inflorescence branches antrorsely pilose (hairs straight, white, c. 0.4 mm long); clustered (?), branching at the base, spreading (short, densely clustered), distichous, without spikelets inserted at the base. Spikelets 4 on a typical ultimate inflorescence branch, on second order branches, erect (densely overlapping, rachis completely hidden), spreading (c. erect).

Incomplete (`imperfect') spikelets. Incomplete spikelets restricted to the base of the rachis; neuter (reduced to glumes); sessile to subsessile. Basal `incomplete' spikelets reduced to a pair of empty glumes.

Hermaphrodite (`perfect') spikelets. Hermaphrodite spikelets shortly pedicellate, 5.5-7.7(-9) mm long, laterally compressed, cuneate, not disarticulating as a separate unit, disarticulating above the glumes. Pedicels 0.4-0.9(-2) mm long, erect, thick, pilose, straight. Glumes two per spikelet, similar, equal in length, exceeding the florets, longer than the proximal lemma. Lower glume narrowly ovate, 5.5-7.7(-10) mm long, 0.3-0.45 mm wide, membranous, keeled, subulate (tapering to a fine bristle), entire, awned, margin ciliate; 1 veined, midvein pilose; intercostal regions villous (hairs straight, to 2.5 mm long); awn 1.5-3 mm long, at the tip scabrous and pilose (below, the hairs to 2 mm long). Upper glume narrowly ovate, 5.5-7.7(-10) mm long, 0.3-0.45 mm wide, membranous, keeled, subulate (tapering to a fine bristle), entire, awned, margin ciliate; 1 veined, midvein pilose; intercostal regions villous; awn 1.5-3 mm long, scabrous (hairs to 2 mm long). Rudimentary florets absent. Incomplete florets absent. Hermaphrodite florets 1 per spikelet. Rachilla disarticulating directly below the florets, straight, antrorsely pilose or villous (?, the hairs appressed), apically prolonged; prolongation 0.7-1.4 mm long, naked. Callus present, blunt, very short, pilose or villous (?), hairs to 0.8 mm long. Lemma similar in firmness to the glumes, laterally compressed, narrowly elliptic, 4-5.1 mm long, 0.5-0.6 mm wide, membranous, not keeled, acute, bifid, 2 -lobed; awned. Lemma margins smooth or ciliolate. Lemma 5 veined. Lemma veins not confluent apically, obscure, scabrous or pilose, with the hairs on all the veins, with the hairs extending the length of the veins; intercostal regions scabrous or pilose, the hairs over the entire dorsal surface or only at the base. Awns 3, median and lateral. Median awn much longer than the body of the lemmas, 9-17 mm long, 1 veined, different in form from the lateral awns, terete, dorsal, arising from the upper half of the lemma, geniculate, column twisted, scabrous. Lateral awns shorter than the median awn, 2-4.5 mm long (straight, column not twisted). Palea fully developed, slightly shorter than the lemmas, thinner than the lemmas, gaping, narrowly oblong or narrowly ovate, 3.2-4.3 mm long, 0.3-0.4 mm wide, hyaline to membranous, 2-keeled, keels wingless, truncate, bidentate, margin smooth or margin ciliolate; 2 veined, veins scabrous or veins ciliate; intercostal regions scabrous, or intercostal regions pilose (the lateral faces very broad and overlapping at the base). Lodicules 2, free, hyaline, oblong, obtuse or truncate, smooth, with entire margins, glabrous. Stamens 3. Anthers 1.4-2.2 mm long, yellow, basally 2-lobed (1/3 or more). Ovary obovoid (?), glabrous. Styles 2 (?), apical, fused.

Fruit. Fruit free from both lemma and palea, oblong or fusiform, 2.5-3 mm long, 0.5-0.7 mm wide, longitudinally grooved, glabrous, without a fleshy apex. Hilum c. 0.2 mm long, punctiform, above the base. Embryo 0.5-0.6 mm long, not waisted, with an epiblast; endosperm soft.

Cytology. 2n = 14 (European).

Common name. Hares'-tail Grass, Bouquet Grass.

Distribution. Introduced. Tasmania, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, Western Australia, Queensland, and South Australia. World distribution: Mediterranean.

Ecology. Mesophytic; in open habitats. Coastal scrub, often in sand dunes, dry open areas. Flowers Sept.-Feb. Fruits Nov.-March.

Vouchers. Specimens examined morphologically: W.A.: Boranup (Breakneck Gully) N of Hamelin Bay, light brown sandy soil at roadside and in open shade, scattered erect annual grass, 8 Dec. 1974, R.Pullen 9890 (CANB!, PERTH); S.A.: Waitpinga Beach, low coastal scrub, sandy soil, growing in masses on hillside, 3 Dec. 1985, N.N.Donner 11218 (AD, CANB!); N.S.W.: Crookhaven Heads, back beach dunes and inland there-from, 5 Dec. 1987, N.Lloyd 635 (CANB); A.C.T.: Black Mtn, near C.S.I.R.O., Canberra, March 1939, R.M.M. (CANB); Vic.: Dartmoor, open grassy ground by side of main road, 28 Nov. 1975, R.V.Smith 11/1975 (AD, CANB!, BRI, HO, NSW, K); Tas.: Whitemark Village, Flinders Is., 5 Nov. 1988, J.S.Whinray 1843 (CANB!, HO).

Material examined anatomically: W.A.: Boranup (Breakneck Gully) N of Hamelin Bay, light brown sandy soil at roadside and in open shade, scattered erect annual grass, 8 Dec. 1974, R.Pullen 9890 (CANB!, PERTH). N.S.W.: Crookhaven Heads, back beach dunes and inland there-from, 5 Dec. 1987, N.Lloyd 635 (CANB). Tas.: Whitemark Village, Flinders Is., 5 Nov. 1988, J.S.Whinray 1843 (CANB!, HO).

Notes. Economic importance: cultivated as an ornamental.

References. Morphology: Clayton & Renvoize (1986) p. 138; Jacobs & Hastings (1992) ms p. 146; Morris (1991) p. 98-99; Wheeler et al. (1990) p. 211; Hubbard (1976) p. 288; Tutin (1980) p. 225. Cytology: Tutin (1980) p. 225; Hubbard (1976) p. 289. Illustrations: laguru02.gif laguru25.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