| # The grass genera of the world |

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

### Geochloa H.P. Linder & N.P. Barker

Type species: G. lupulina (L. f.) H.P. Linder & N. P. Barker.

Habit, vegetative morphology. Perennial; caespitose; geophytic. Culms 25–75 cm high; herbaceous; tuberous. Plants without multicellular glands. Leaf blades tough, flat, or rolled; exhibiting multicellular glands abaxially; persistent. Ligule a fringe of hairs (1 to several-rowed).

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

Inflorescence. Inflorescence paniculate; open, or contracted (usually with branches shorter than the spikelets); espatheate; not comprising ‘partial inflorescences’ and foliar organs.

Female-fertile spikelets. Spikelets about 7–55 mm long; presumably compressed laterally; disarticulating above the glumes; probably not disarticulating between the florets. Rachilla probably prolonged beyond the uppermost female-fertile floret (despite the Linder et al. 2010 description); the rachilla extension probably with incomplete florets. Hairy callus present (villous). Callus blunt (about as long as the rachilla internode).

Glumes two; more or less equal; about equalling the spikelets to exceeding the spikelets; long relative to the adjacent lemmas; similar. Lower glume about equalling the lowest lemma; 1–5 nerved. Upper glume 1–5 nerved. Spikelets probably with incomplete florets, or with female-fertile florets only. The incomplete florets distal to the female-fertile florets. The distal incomplete florets if present, merely underdeveloped; awned.

Female-fertile florets (2–)3–7. Lemmas not becoming indurated; incised; 2 lobed (these sometimes extended into 2 mm setae); not deeply cleft; awned. Awns 1 (much exceeding the laterl setae); median; from a sinus; non-geniculate; straight, or flexuous. Awn bases twisted, or not twisted. Lemmas hairy. The hairs not in tufts; but the scattered dorsal indumentum sometimes longer towards the apex. Lemmas 9 nerved. Palea present; relatively long (sometimes overtopping the lemma sinus); 2-keeled. Palea back between the keels glabrous to hairy. Palea keels hairy (wwith hair tufts). Lodicules present; 2; fleshy (rhomboid); shortly ciliate (without microhairs); 3-veined. Stamens 3 (?).

Fruit, embryo and seedling. Disseminule a free caryopsis. Fruit obovate; glabrous. Hilum linear, but less than a quarter of the caryopsis length. Embryo large.

Cytology. Chromosome base number, x = of G.decora 48.

Classification. Watson & Dallwitz (1994): Stipoideae. Soreng et al. (2015): Danthonioideae; Danthonieae. 3 species (G. decora, G. lupulina, G. rufa).

Distribution, phytogeography, ecology. Restricted to the South African Cape.

In well drained habitats.

References, etc. Morphological/taxonomic: Linder et al. (2010).

Special comments. 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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