Seed head. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Seed head. Photo: John Tann, Mudgee, NSW

Seeds. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Plant. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Common Name

Feathertop Rhodes Grass; Feathertop Rhodes

Family

Poaceae

Notes

Introduced perennial grass 15cm-1.2m tall. Leaves with a hairless sheath (sometimes hairy towards the top of the sheath) at the base. Ligule a membrane with a fringe of hairs. Leaves 10-30cm long, 2-8mm wide, flat or folded lengthwise, hairless, with sharp edges, tapering to a point. Spikelets green, white or brown, 2-5mm long, excluding the awn. Seeds with one long awn, often in pairs. Mature seed groups cylindrical, digitate, but not spreading.

Description and photo (page 76) and line drawing of flower head (page 74 Fig. 14g) in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales

PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Chloris~virgata

ausgrass2 description, photos, and line drawings: http://ausgrass2.myspecies.info/content/chloris-virgata