Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora
Common names
blue grass, blue wheat grass
Biostatus
Native
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Grasses
Flower colours
Violet/Purple, Yellow
Detailed description
Tufted, stoloniferous, glaucous to green grass. Leaf-sheath 6–10 mm, striate, glabrous or retrorsely short hairy. Ligule 0.2–0.5 mm, margin frayed. Leaf-blade 100–200 × 2–4 mm, flat bright green or glaucous, ribbed, underside with small antrorse teeth or glabrous, upper with antrorse short hairs or prickle-teeth on ribs, margin shortly prickle-toothed. Culm 300–600(–900) mm, erect, suberect or drooping. Inflorescence 100–250 mm, of up to 6–15 spikelets. Spikelets 14–25 mm, of 7–12 florets. Glumes ± equal, 5–9 mm, 3–5-nerved, keeled, broad, margins papery, ciliate; keel and nerves prickle-toothed, sometimes extending into a short awn. Lemma apex often bifid, awn absent or about length of lemma. Palea 9–12 mm, apex truncate, retuse, ciliate. Rachilla 1–2.5 mm, hairy. Callus 0.75–1 mm, with scattered short hairs. Anthers 3–5 mm, purple or yellow.
Similar taxa
Not closely allied to any of the endemic New Zealand species and unlikely to be confused with any of them. Long-awned forms could be confused with short-awned variants of Anthosachne solandri, but the awns in that species are recurved never straight.
Distribution
Indigenous. In New Zealand present from the Three Kings Islands south throughout the North Island to the South Island from Nelson to Banks Peninsula. Also present in Eastern Australia.
Habitat
Primarily a coastal species of cliff faces, and rocky ground, utilising rocks of various substrates but showing a decided preference for base-rich substrates such as limestone, calcareous mudstone, siltstone and sandstones, basalt or the zeolite-rich facies of greywacke. On offshore islands it occasionally grows on open clay pans.
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
Please note, threat classifications are often suggested by authors when publications fall between NZTCS assessment periods – these interim threat classification statuses has not been assessed by the NZTCS panel.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: DPS, DPT, SO
Threats
North Island populations have declined a lot and now not commonly found unless in little pockets. Competition from weeds is a major issue.
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Poaceae
Synonyms
Triticum multiflorum Hook.f., Agropyron multiflorum (Hook.f.) Cheeseman, A. kirkii Zotov, A. multiflorum var. longisetum Hack., A. kirkii var. longisetum (Hack.) Zotov, Elymus multiflorus var. longisetus (Hack.) Á.Löve et Connor; Elymus multiflorus (Hook.f.) Á.Löve et Connor subsp. multiflorus; Anthosachne multiflora (Hook.f.) C.Yen et J.L.Yang subsp. multiflora
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
September–February
Fruiting
October–May
Life cycle
Florets are dispersed by wind and attachment (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Propagation technique
Easy from fresh seed and rooted pieces. Likes a sunny aspect in free draining soil. The long-awned froms are especially attractive.
Other information
Where To Buy
Occasionally offered by specialist native plant nurseries.
Etymology
multiflora: From late Latin, feminine of multiflorus meaning ‘bearing many flowers’
Manaaki Whenua Online Interactive Key
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
ANTKSM
Chromosome number
2n = 42
Previous conservation statuses
2017 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: DP, SO
2012 | Data Deficient
2009 | Not Threatened
2004 | Not Threatened
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Barkworth ME, Jacobs SWL. 2011: The Triticeae (Gramineae) in Australasia. Telopea 13: 37–56.
Edgar E, Connor HE. 2000. Flora of New Zealand. Vol. V. Grasses. Christchurch, Manaaki Whenua Press. 650 p.
Govaerts R. 2014. New combinations for Philip Island wheat grass, Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana (Poaceae). Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Gardens 27: 23–24.
Attribution
Fact sheet srepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange June 2005. Description adapted from Edgar & Connor (2000).
Some of this factsheet information is derived from Flora of New Zealand Online and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand licence.
NZPCN Fact Sheet citation
Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/anthosachne-kingiana-subsp-multiflora/ (Date website was queried)