Chionochloa defracta

Detailed description

Tussocks of variable stature, some robust with long leaves, others slender with shorter, narrow leaves; culm internodes hairy; leaves stiff, scabrid, deciduous. Leaf-sheath to 250 mm, fracturing into short segments, shining light brown at base, long (4 mm) and short deciduous inter-rib hairs above, margin long hairy above, apical tuft of hairs to 4 mm. Ligule to 0.8 mm. Leaf-blade to 750 × 1.3 mm diameter, acicular rush-like, midrib evident, falling with part of sheath, abaxially with long hairs aside midrib below becoming very scabrid above, adaxially with weft of long hairs at base, abundant prickle-teeth and papillae above; margin thick, below with long (up to 4 mm) hairs interlocking across leaf-blade, scabrid above. Culm to 650 mm; lower internodes densely hairy, less so above, hairy below inflorescence. Inflorescence to 200 mm, narrow and strict, very scabrid and with a few long hairs at branch axils and below spikelets. Spikelets of up to 6 lightly purpled florets. Glumes acute or shortly awned, scabrid above, less than or equal to adjacent lemma lobes; lower to 11 mm, 3-nerved, upper to 13 mm, 5–7-nerved. Lemma to 5.5 mm; hairs dense at margin and aside central nerve, often in all internerves or sometimes few or absent, greater than or equal to sinus; lateral lobes to 4.5 mm including awn to 2 mm, or acute, scabrid above; central awn to 11 mm from 2.5 mm twisting column. Palea to 8 mm. Callus to 1 mm, hairs to 4 mm. Rachilla to 1 mm, very occasionally short hairy. Lodicules to 1 mm. Anthers to 3.5 mm. Ovary to 1 mm; stigma-styles to 3.5 mm. Seeds to 3.5 mm.