Festuca georgii E. Alexeev Byull. Mosk. Obshch. Ispyt. Prir. Biol. 83(5): 94–95. 1978.
DIAN XI BEI YANG MAO, Chinese name by Xiang Chen, 2002.
Type: George Forrest, VIII 1906, No. 2797 (K), K: H2002/02713 1. Subg. Festuca L. sect. Aulaxyer.
Vegetative morphology. Plants stiffly erect. Plants loosely tufted. Plants clumped loosely. Plants with non-flowering shoots more common than flowering shoots. Plants with leaves mostly basal. Plants with tillering leaves over half the length of the culms (about half). Plants with bases purplish (slightly). Plants with shoots extravaginal. Culms 60–80 cm tall. Culms 1.5–1.7 mm wide. Culms strict, erect. Culms internodes glabrous. Culms nodes 2–3. Uppermost culms nodes in mid 1/3 of the culm. Sheaths shorter than the internode. Sheaths glabrous. Sheaths open more than half their length. Sheaths not conspicuous at the base of the plant. Sheaths remaining entire, not conspicuously splitting between the veins (based on type). Auricles absent (or a little swelling). Ligules 0.2–0.4 mm long. Ligules margins ciliate. Ligules apices erose. Leaf blades erect, stiffish. Leaf blades filiform. Leaf blades conduplicate. Leaf blades 7–22 cm long. Leaf blades adaxial surfaces with trichomes. Leaf blades adaxial surfaces glabrescent (scaberulous). Leaf blades abaxial surfaces glabrous. Flag leaves blades 7–16 cm long. Flag leaves blades distinctly shorter than the sheath, or nearly equal to the sheath. Leaf blades 0.8–1.5 mm wide. Leaf blades 0.8–1.5 mm deep. Veins 7–9(–13). Adaxial to abaxial sclerenchyma strands absent (adaxial sclerenchyma present but not reach the vascular boundles). Abaxial sclerenchyma well developed. Abaxial sclerenchyma in broad bands or continuous. Ribs 7–9 (well defined).
Floral morphology. Inflorescences lanceolate. Inflorescences loosely open. Inflorescences 15–20 cm long. Inflorescences branches 4–8 cm long. Inflorescences lowest internodes 3.5–5 cm long. Inflorescences branches at the lowest nodes 2. Inflorescences branches flexible. 6–9 fertile spikelets on the longest branches. Inflorescences branches angular in cross section. Inflorescences branches scabrous on the angles. Inflorescences branches vestiture sparse. Pedicels 1.5–4 mm long. Spikelets evenly distributed along the branches. Spikelets 8–10 mm long. Spikelets 2.5–3.5 mm wide. Spikelets greenish, or purplish. Spikelets lanceolate. Florets 3(–4) (based on type). Glumes glabrous. Glumes margins not ciliate. Glumes margins not membranous (or very narrowly membranous). Glumes apices accuminate. First glume narrowly lanceolate (usually), or lanceolate. First glume 3.5–4 mm long. First glume 1 nerved. First glume 0.7–0.8 as long as second glume. Second glume lanceolate, or broadly lanceolate (usually). Second glume 4.5–5 mm long. Second glume 3 nerved. Second glume shorter than first lemma. Second glume 0.5–0.6 as long as the spikelets. Rachilla internodes 1.3–1.5 mm long. Rachilla internodes antrorsely scabrous (sparsely). Rachilla internodes flattened. Rachilla internodes narrow. Rachilla internodes straight. Lemmas 6–7 mm long. Lemmas lanceolate. Lemmas somewhat dorsally compressed. Lemmas veins 5. Lemmas with distinct veins in dorsal view (not very distinct). Lemmas glabrous, or with trichomes. Lemmas scabrous (scaberulous). Lemmas trichomes on the upper portion. Lemmas upper margins narrowly membranous, or not membranous. Lemmas apices accuminate. Lemmas apices awns (0.5–)0.8–1.5 mm long. Lemmas apices awns much shorter than the lemmas. Paleas 6–7 mm long. Paleas 0.8–1 mm apart. Paleas keels scaberulous, or scabrous. Paleas inter-keel regions scabrous (scaberulous). Anthers 3–3.3 mm long. Ovary apices hairy. Ovary hairs sparse.
Ecology. Flowering time Aug. Moist shady situations at the margins of pine forests on the eastern flank of the Lichiang Range 10–11,000 ft. Distribution. Southwestern China: Yunnan.
Notes. Alexeev (1978) placed this taxon in section Festuca and provided a somewhat rubra-like leaf cross section with thick sclerenchyma that reaches from the abaxial surface to many of the vascular bundles and occurs on the tops of the well defined ribs.
Illustrations. • Type Specimen at Kew. Type specimen of F. georgii, K: H 2002/02713 1, selected by Alexeev in 1976. Note relatively narrow leaves distributed in a basal tuft and the culms and a loose panicle of spikelets with inconspicuous awns. • Leaf cross section from type specimen. Leaf cross section from the type specimen Kew: H2002/02713 1. Note sclereenchyma strands reaching from the abaxial surface to the vascular bundles and heavy sclerenchyma on top of the ribs, but no continuous adaxial to abaxial sclerenchyma strands. Drawing by Xiang Chen at Canadian Museum of Nature, with permission. • Leaf anatomy from original description. Leaf cross section from the original description: Byull. Mosk. Obshch. Ispyt. Prir. Biol. 83(5): 94–95. 1978. Leaf blades conduplicate, (10-)30 cm long (up to 30 cm), 0.7–0.9 mm wide; veins 7–9(-13); adaxial to abaxial sclerenchyma strands absent. Abaxial sclerenchyma well developed, in broad bands or continuous; ribs 5–7 (midrib and 4 or 6 lateral ribs well developed). • Panicle of Type. Upper portion of Inflorescence on the type specimen. It is, loosely open, with branches 4–8 cm long, and. 6–9 fertile spikelets on the longest branches. • Close-up to spikelets on type.. Spikelets 8–10 mm long, 2.5–3.5 mm wide, greenish or purplish, lanceolate. Florets 3(-4) . Lemmas 6–7 mm long, lanceolate, apices accuminate; awns (0.5-)0.8–1.5 mm long. • Distribution map.
Cite this publication as: ‘Xiang Chen, S.G. Aiken, and M.J. Dallwitz (2002 onwards). Festuca of China: Descriptions, Illustrations, Identification, and Information Retrieval. Version: 4th February 2003. http://www.cdelta.ibcas.ac.cn’.
