Panicum repens, L.
This is a perennial glaucous grass with stoloniferous and rhizomiferous stems bearing ordinary erect leafy branches, and the branches come out piercing through the leaf-sheath (extravaginal).
Stems are numerous, stiff and erect, 1/2 to 3 feet in length, glabrous, covered below by brownish or whitish scale-leaves, and above with densely distichous leaves.
The leaf-sheath is firm, distinctly striate, glabrous, margins ciliate on both sides up to the point of overlapping and then the outer margin alone ciliate. The ligule is a short thin membrane with very short cilia on the free margin. The nodes are glabrous.
The leaf-blade is glaucous, narrow, lanceolate, thinly coriaceous, acuminate with a hardened tip, 1 to 7 or 9 inches long, 1/2 to 1/4 inch broad, flat or involute when slightly faded, with a few distantly scattered hairs above, especially towards the lower portion of the blade when young, and becoming glabrous later, glabrous on the lower surface, margin is finely serrate and with a few cilia towards the base, some hairs being tubercle-based; base of the blade is rounded or cordate, midrib is prominent and keeled.
Fig. 103.—Panicum repens.
1. Spike; 2 and 3. front and back view of a spikelet; 4, 5 and 6. first, second and third glumes; 7. palea of the third glume; 8 and 9. fourth glume and its palea; 10. lodicules, stamens and ovary; 11. leaf showing ligule.
The inflorescence is a panicle, contracted and not much exserted from the topmost leaf-sheath, 3 to 8 inches long, branches are usually many, erect, the lower being 2 to 5 inches long, slender, angular and scaberulous.
The spikelets are glabrous, erect, pale or pale green, sometimes purplish also on one side, ovate-oblong or oblong-lanceolate, acute, 1/8 inch, pedicels are long with cupular tips.