Kangaroo Grass

This species has dense fascicles of racemes similar to those of Themeda triandra, but with smaller spikelet parts and conspicuously setose homogamous spikelets with long, patent bristles from very large tubercles. It can also generally be separated by its annual habit.

Annual. Culms moderately robust, erect or geniculate at base, ca. 1 m tall. Leaf sheaths glabrous or with tubercle-based bristles at mouth; leaf blades flat or folded, up to 30 × 0.3–0.9 cm, glabrous, abruptly acute to acuminate; ligule ca. 3 mm. Compound panicle large, dense; spathes and spatheoles lanceolate-caudate, glabrous, innermost 1.3–1.7 cm. Raceme composed of a triad of 1 sessile and 2 pedicelled spikelets above the involucre of 2 homogamous pairs. Homogamous spikelets all sessile, arising at same level, barren, both glumes present, 4.5–6 mm, lanceolate, stiffly setose in upper half with 3–4 mm, tubercle-based bristles. Sessile spikelet 4–4.5 mm; callus 0.8–1 mm, subacute, brown bearded; lower glume dorsally rounded, dark brown at maturity, pubescent, often thinly or glabrous on lower back; awn 3.5–4 cm. Pedicelled spikelet 4–6 mm, barren. Fl. and fr. Jun–Dec.

Nepal, India.

Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Yunnan [India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam; Australia].

600-3000 m

Dry hill slopes; 400–2000 m.

Andropogon quadrivalvis Linnaeus in Murray, Syst. Veg., ed. 13, 758. 1774; Themeda chinensis (A. Camus) S. L. Chen & T. D. Zhuang; T. ciliata (Linnaeus f.) Hackel subsp. chinensis A. Camus; T. echinata Keng; T. yuanmounensis S. L. Chen & T. D. Zhuang.