Brachiaria mutica (Forssk.) Stapf

Global description

Brachiaria mutica is a vivacious grass that can grow up to one metre high. Indurated culm, often lying at the base and rooting easily at the nodes in contact with the soil. The nodes and sheath are entirely hairy. The ligule is ciliated, about 1 mm long. The leaf blade is lanceolate, elongated, with a tapering tip. It is up to 30 cm long and 7 to 15 mm wide. It is flat, with a scabrous margin, glabrous or most often hirsute on the upper side. It is often reddish in colour. The inflorescence is a 7-20 cm long panicle, consisting of 5-20 differently arranged racemes. Spikelets green and often purple-tinged, hairless, 2.5 to 3.5 mm long, arranged in pairs, with pedicels of unequal length.

General habit

Brachiaria mutica is a decumbent grass that can reach 25 to 125 cm in height.

Underground system

The roots are fasciculate, with adventitious roots developing from the basal nodes in contact with the soil.

Culm

Cylindrical culm, first prostrate on the ground and then erect, can be 25 to 125 cm high. The nodes are hairy.

Leaf

Simple, alternate leaves. The sheath is cylindrical, hispid over its entire surface, with tubercular-based hairs. The ligule is ciliated, 1 mm long. The blade is linear lanceolate, 6-30 cm long and 3-15 mm wide, slightly broadened at the base, with an acuminate apex. The lower surface is glabrous and the upper surface is shaggy and scabrous, the margin scabrous.

Inflorescence

The inflorescence is 7 to 20 cm high, formed by 5 to 20 one-sided racemes, 2 to 10 cm long, usually simple or sometimes with secondary racemes near the base. The rachis is winged, 0.5 to 1 mm wide, with a scabrous margin.

Spikelet

The spikelets are in pairs, pedicellate and arranged in several more or less regular rows. The spikelet is elliptical, acute, and 2.5 to 3.5 mm long. The lower glume is oval, acute, 1/4 to 1/3 the length of the spikelet, with 3-5 veins. The upper glume is oblong, acute, the size of the spikelet, 3-5 veins long. The lower floret is male, consisting of a lemma similar to the upper glume, the palea is present, hyaline. The upper floret is fertile, consisting of an elliptic, obtuse, mucronate or mucronulate lemma, 2-3 mm long, indurated, rough, not keeled with involuted margins. The palea is of the same texture as the lemma, rough.

Origin

Brachiaria mutica is native to Africa, from Sahara to Angola, N. Africa to Syria, SW. Arabian Peninsula

Worldwide distribution

This species is now pantropical.

https://www.gbif.org/species/2705851