Bothriochloa insculpta (A. Rich.) A. Camus

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Bothriochloa insculpta

Photo: Bart Wursten
Alexandra Park, Harare

Bothriochloa insculpta

Photo: Mark Hyde
Lodge 147, Mazvikadei

Bothriochloa insculpta

Photo: Mark Hyde
Lodge 147, Mazvikadei

Bothriochloa insculpta

Photo: Mark Hyde
Lodge 147, Mazvikadei

Bothriochloa insculpta

Photo: Mark Hyde
Lodge 147, Mazvikadei

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Species details: Click on each item to see an explanation of that item (Note: opens a new window)

Synonyms: Amphilophis insculpta (Hochst. ex A. Rich.) Stapf
Andropogon insculptus Hochst. ex A. Rich.
Andropogon pertusus var. capensis Hack.
Andropogon pertusus var. insculptus (Hochst. ex A. Rich.) Hack. A. & C.
Andropogon pertusus (L.) Willd.
Bothriochloa pertusa (L.) A. Camus
Dichanthium insculptum (A. Rich.) Clayton
Common names: Pinhole grass (English)
Frequency: Common
Status: Native
Description:
Caespitose perennial; culms up to 200 cm high, either decumbent and rambling or developing into stout woody stolons, branching and rooting at the nodes; nodes barbate with white hairs; internodes channelled on one side; leaf sheaths glabrous, tightly clasping the internodes, barbate at the mouth; ligule membranous; leaf laminas 4–30 cm × 2–8 mm, glabrous on both sides, occasionally with tubercle-based hairs below, rough on the margins. Inflorescence of 3–20 subdigitate peduncled racemes; main axis up to 3 cm long, shorter than the lowermost racemes; raceme peduncles glabrous; racemes up to 10 cm long, but variable; rhachis internodes and pedicels pilose on the margins, the hairs increasing in length upwards to c. 3 mm. Sessile spikelet c. 4.5 mm long, narrowly elliptic; callus c. 0.5 mm long, barbate, obtuse; inferior glume with a single deep pit on the back just above the middle, glabrous or pubescent to shortly pilose below, shortly ciliate on the keels towards the apex; superior glume narrowly lanceolate, sharply carinate, glabrous, minutely ciliate on the keel towards the apex; inferior floret empty, its lemma c. 3.5 mm long, broadly ovate; superior floret epaleate, the lemma c. 2 mm long, stipitiform, awned from the apex; awn c. 25 mm long, glabrous; anthers c. 1.8 mm long. Pedicelled spikelet c. 5 mm long, neuter, glabrous; inferior glume oblong, with 0–4 shallow slit-like pits, irregularly toothed at the apex, ciliate along the keels; superior glume lanceolate, delicate, ciliate on the margins; inferior lemma c. 3 mm long, oblong, truncate at the apex.
Notes: Perennial tufted grass, often with stolons. It is strongly aromatic when crushed. The culms have a conspicuous ring of white hairs at the nodes. The inflorescence is subdigitate, purple.
Derivation of specific name:
Habitat: In overgrazed and disturbed places.
Altitude range: (metres) Up to 1520 m
Flowering time:Oct - Jun
Worldwide distribution: Widespread in tropical Africa, Arabia and India; introduced in Australia.
Zimbabwe distribution: N,W,C,E,S
Growth form(s):
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters: Display spot characters for this species
Images last updated: Wednesday 4 October 2006
Literature:

Chapano, C. & Mamuto, M. (2003). Plants of the Chimanimani District National Herbarium and Botanic Garden, Zimbabwe Page 10.

Chapano, C. & Mugarisanwa, N.H. (2003). Plants of the Matobo District National Herbarium and Botanic Garden, Zimbabwe Page 6.

Cope, T.A. (2002). Poaceae Flora Zambesiaca 10(4) Pages 47 - 48.

Isaiah, A.M. & Komi, T. (2015). Grasses in the Botswana National Botanic Garden South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria Page 5. (Includes a picture).

Jackson, G. & Wiehe, P.O. (1958). An Annotated Check List of Nyasaland Grasses The Government Printer, Zomba, Nyasaland Page 31. Also as Bothriochloa pertusa

Klaassen Esmerialda, E.S. & Craven P. (2003). Checklist of grasses in Namibia SABONET Report No. 20 Page 15.

Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 100.

Roodt, V. (2015). Grasses & Grazers of Botswana and the surrounding savanna Struik Nature, South Africa Pages 52 - 53. (Includes a picture).

Setshogo, M.P. (2000). Notes on the grass subtribe Sorghinae (Poaceae: Andropogoneae) in the Flora Zambesiaca area Kirkia 17(2) Page 145.

Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 132.

Siebert, S. & Mössmer, M. (Editors) (2002). SABONET Southern Mozambique Expedition 2001; Provisional Plant Checklist of the Maputo Elephant Reserve (MER) and Licuati Forest Reserve (LFR) SABONET News 7(1) Page 27.

Timberlake, J.R. & Childes, S.L. (2004). Biodiversity of the Four Corners Area: Technical Reviews Volume Two (Chapter 5-15) Appendix 5-1: Plant Checklist Occasional Publications in Biodiversity 15 Page 187.


Other sources of information about Bothriochloa insculpta:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Bothriochloa insculpta
Flora of Burundi: Bothriochloa insculpta
Flora of Caprivi: Bothriochloa insculpta
Flora of Malawi: Bothriochloa insculpta
Flora of Mozambique: Bothriochloa insculpta
Flora of Zambia: Bothriochloa insculpta

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Bothriochloa insculpta
African Plant Database: Bothriochloa insculpta
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Bothriochloa insculpta
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Bothriochloa insculpta
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Bothriochloa insculpta
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Bothriochloa insculpta
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Bothriochloa insculpta
JSTOR Plant Science: Bothriochloa insculpta
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Bothriochloa insculpta
Plants of the World Online: Bothriochloa insculpta
Tropicos: Bothriochloa insculpta
Wikipedia: Bothriochloa insculpta


Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2002-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Zimbabwe: Species information: Bothriochloa insculpta.
https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=108390, retrieved 10 December 2024

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