| # The grass genera of the world |

L. Watson, T.D. Macfarlane, and M.J. Dallwitz

### Stapfochloa H. Scholz

~ Chloris

Type species: S. lamproparia (Stapf) H. Scolz.

Habit, vegetative morphology. Annual; caespitose (geniculately), or decumbent. Leaf blades narrow; (4–16(-20) cm long, 3–5 mm wide. Ligule a fringed membrane.

Reproductive organization. Plants bisexual, all with bisexual spikelets; with hermaphrodite florets. The spikelets hermaphrodite.

Inflorescence. Inflorescence of spicate main branches; paired or digitate. Primary inflorescence branches erect, 2–4. Inflorescence espatheate (basally embraced by the subtending leaf, the base of which is inflated). Spikelets solitary; secund (i.e., the racemes unilateral); sessile.

Female-fertile spikelets. Spikelets 2–2.5 mm long; cuneate; compressed laterally; disarticulating above the glumes; not disarticulating between the florets. Rachilla prolonged beyond the uppermost female-fertile floret; the rachilla extension with incomplete florets. Hairy callus present (pubecsent). Callus blunt.

Glumes two; very unequal (the lower shorter); exceeding the spikelets; long relative to the adjacent lemmas; lateral to the rachis; lanceolate, pointed (acuminate). Lower glume about 0.5 times the length of the upper glume; 1 nerved. Upper glume 1 nerved. Spikelets with incomplete florets. The incomplete florets distal to the female-fertile florets. The distal incomplete florets clearly specialised and modified in form (three, forming a 1-awned clump); awned. Spikelets without proximal incomplete florets.

Female-fertile florets 1. Lemmas ovate, laterally compressed; coriaceous, decidedly firmer than the glumes; not becoming indurated; dark brown in fruit; entire; blunt; awned. Awns 1; median; dorsal to apical; from near the top (sub-apical); non-geniculate; about as long as the body of the lemma to much longer than the body of the lemma. Lemmas with ciliate margins, long- hairy (the hairs white); carinate; 3 nerved. Lodicules present; 2; cuneate, fleshy. Stamens 3. Stigmas 2.

Fruit, embryo and seedling. Fruit trigonous. Hilum short. Pericarp fused.

Classification. Watson & Dallwitz (1994): genus not recognised. Soreng et al. (2015): Chloridoideae; Cynodonteae; Eleusininae. 1 species (S. lamproparia (Stapf) H. Scholz)).

Distribution, phytogeography, ecology. Africa: west tropical, west-central tropical, northeast tropical, and east tropical.

References, etc. Morphological/taxonomic: Clayton et al., Grassbase (2016).

Special comments. Anatomical data wanting.

Illustrations. • Stapfochloa lamproparia, as Chloris: Anderson, Brigham Young Univ. Science Bull. 19 (1974).

We advise against extracting comparative information from the descriptions. This is much more easily achieved using the DELTA data files or the interactive key, which allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, distributions of character states within any set of taxa, geographical distribution, and classifications. See also Guidelines for using data taken from Web publications.

Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., Macfarlane, T.D., and Dallwitz, M.J. 1992 onwards. The grass genera of the world: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval; including synonyms, morphology, anatomy, physiology, phytochemistry, cytology, classification, pathogens, world and local distribution, and references. Version: 15th June 2025. delta-intkey.com’.

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