| # The grass genera of the world |

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

### Fimbribambusa Widjaja

~ Bambusa spp.

Excluding numerous species transferred to other genera

Habit, vegetative morphology. Perennial; caespitose. The flowering culms leafy. Culms leaning, 700–1400 cm high; without nodal roots, woody and persistent; to 0.8–1 cm in diameter (in F. horsfieldii); cylindrical; branched above. Primary branches in F. microcephala 4–10. The branching dendroid. Culm leaves present, or absent (on those bearing inflorescences, at least in F. horsefieldii). Culm leaf sheaths present; in F. microcephala, deciduous; leaving a persisten girdle. Culm internodes hollow. Rhizomes short, pachymorph. Leaves auriculate (the 4–7 mm high auricles falcate); without auricular setae. Leaf blades acuminate or attenuate, linear, or elliptic; broad; 17–35 cm long 30–90 mm wide; pseudopetiolate; cross veined. Ligule an unfringed membrane; entire, in F. hordfieldii truncate. Contra-ligule present.

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

Inflorescence. Inflorescence indeterminate; with pseudospikelets (with glumaceous subtending bracts, axillary buds at spikelet bases and prophylls below the lateral spikelets, leafless between the clusters); comprising untidy nodal tufts, on separate, leafless culms; a complex of ‘partial inflorescences’ and intervening foliar organs.

Female-fertile spikelets. Spikelets unconventional; 6–8 mm long, or 12–16 mm long; oblong, or lanceolate; compressed laterally to not noticeably compressed; disarticulating above the glumes; disarticulating between the florets. Rachilla prolonged beyond the uppermost female-fertile floret; the rachilla extension with incomplete florets.

Glumes persistent, two; shorter than the spikelets; awnless. Spikelets with incomplete florets. The incomplete florets distal to the female-fertile florets (male or sterile). The distal incomplete florets merely underdeveloped; awnless.

Female-fertile florets (2–)4–6. Lemmas ovate or lanceolate; entire; awnless, or mucronate; hairless; non-carinate. Palea present; relatively long; awnless, without apical setae; several nerved (8–10 in F. microcephala). Palea back in F. horsefieldii hairy. Lodicules present; 2 (F. microcephala), or 3 (F. horsefieldii); membranous; ciliate (F. microcephala), or glabrous (F. horsefieldii). Stamens 6. Ovary umbonate, apically apically hairy; with a conspicuous apical appendage. The appendage broadly conical, fleshy. Stigmas 3.

Classification. Watson & Dallwitz (1994): genus not recognised. Soreng et al. (2015): Bambusoideae; Bambusodae; Bambuseae; Bambusinae. 2 species (F. horsefieldii, F. microcephala).

Distribution, phytogeography, ecology. Malesia. Papuasia.

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

Special comments. Fruit data wanting. Anatomical data wanting.

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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