Ischaemum timorense Kunth, Révis. Gramin.

Ischaemum timorense Kunth, Révis. Gramin. View in CoL 1: 369. 1830. Figs. 4 View Fig , 5h View Fig

Annual or perennial herbs. Culms up to 70

cm, decumbent, branched, pubescent at nodes, rooting from lower nodes. Leaf blades lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 2–11 × 0.2–0.7 cm, base narrowed into petiole-like structure up to 3.5 cm, margins entire, minutely hirsute, apex acute or shortly acuminate, both surfaces pilose with tubercle-based hairs, sometimes glabrous on upper surface; sheaths’ margins ciliate on one side and at throat, keeled, glabrous or pilose on upper half or throughout with tubercle-based hairs; ligule c. 1 mm, membranous, shortly ciliate. Inflorescence of paired racemes; racemes 2–5 cm; rachis fragile, jointed, zig-zag, rachis internodes ciliate along angles and apex. Spikelets borne in pairs, one sessile and other pedicelled, similar in form and sex, different in size, ovate-lanceolate, symmetrical, 4–5 mm (excluding awns), pale green or purple-green; florets 2. Sessile spikelets: lower glume lanceolate, 3.5–4.5 mm, 2-keeled, 7 or more-nerved at upper part, margins hyaline, apex bicuspidate, sub-coriaceous on lower part, herbaceous on upper part, lower part smooth, glabrous, upper part hispid, especially on nerves; upper glume lanceolate, 4–5 mm (excluding awn), keeled, 5-nerved, margins hyaline, ciliate, apex bicuspidate with middle awn of 1–4 mm, awn straight, herbaceous, lower part smooth, glabrous, upper part hispid. Lower floret male or sterile; lemma ovate-lanceolate, 2.5–4.5 mm, keeled, 3-nerved, margins ciliate, apex acuminate, sub-membranous, glabrous, hyaline; palea ovate-lanceolate, 2.5–3 mm, 2-nerved, margins ciliate, membranous, glabrous, hyaline. Upper floret bisexual; lemma oblong, 3–3.5 mm, margins ciliate, apex 2-lobed, awned, awn 7–12 mm, geniculate or straight, membranous, glabrous, hyaline; palea oblong, 3–3.5 mm, apex acute, membranous, glabrous, hyaline. Pedicelled spikelets narrower than sessile, awned; pedicels 2–2.5 mm, ciliate along angles and apex.

Flowering & fruiting: Flowering and fruiting from August to November.

Habitat: Open grasslands in the forest margins. Distribution: Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam ( Chen et al., 2006b; POWO, 2023) and now in Nepal. It is introduced in Africa and America ( Chen et al., 2006b).

Specimens examined: NEPAL, Koshi province, Jhapa district, Haldibari rural municipality, Chauki

Biran community forest, N 26.51°, E 88.01°, 85 m,

04.11.2020, Y. B. Poudel JF506 ( KATH); Radakali community forest, N 26.50°, E 88.03°, 86 m GoogleMaps ,

24.08.2019, Y. B . Poudel & K. Panthi PCF46 (KATH).

Notes: Ischaemum timorense is a highly variable species (Singh & Rao, 2008), and in our specimens it mainly varies in indumentum and size of leaf, and size of petiole-like base.