Plants perennial; cespitose, with short, thick, scaly rhizomes. Culms 80-500 cm tall, to 1.5 cm thick, reedlike, almost woody; internodes solid. Leaves cauline, evenly distributed, distichous; sheaths with tightly overlapping margins; ligules a cartilaginous ridge subtending a line of hairs; blades broad, flat, deciduous at maturity, margins not cartilaginous. Inflorescences terminal, plumose panicles, 30-80 cm, exceeding the upper leaves; disarticulation above the glumes and between the florets. Spikelets laterally compressed; florets (2)4-10, bisexual, lowest florets sometimes only an empty lemma; rachilla internodes glabrous. Glumes 2, shorter than the lemmas, subequal, narrowly ovate, glabrous, membranous, 1-veined, acute; calluses obtuse, pilose; lemmas narrowly ovate, thinly membranous to hyaline, 3-veined, midveins glabrous, margins and lateral veins long pilose on the distal 2/3, apices bifid, shortly awned from between the teeth; paleas shorter than the lemmas, hyaline, 2-keeled. x = unknown, frequently reported as 10.
Discussion
Neyraudia is a genus of 2-4 species from the tropics of the Eastern Hemisphere. One Asian species is established in Florida. It differs from the other species in the genus in having a sterile lemma at the base of the spikelets. Reports of Neyraudia arundinacea occurring in the Flora region have not been substantiated.
Neyraudia is often mistaken for Phragmites, but that genus has villous rachilla internodes and glabrous lemmas.
Selected References
None.