Flora of New Zealand Series

rough poa tussock

Stiff, fine-leaved, greyish green, small, wiry, tussocks to c. 80 cm, from a narrow base packed with dead dry leaves; branching intravaginal; leaf-blades persistent. Leaf-sheath light brown, becoming dull grey-brown, coriaceous, smooth or slightly scabrid. Ligule c. 0.3 mm, a truncate minutely ciliate rim, abaxially with minute prickle-teeth. Leaf-blade 15-25-(35) cm, inrolled, c. 0.5 mm diam., abaxially usually finely scabrid, adaxially densely short-scabrid; margins finely scabrid, tip long, fine, acicular. Culm 30-75 cm, erect, internodes smooth to finely scabrid. Panicle 10-20 cm, contracted at first, later lax with spreading, slender, finely scabrid branches tipped by numerous spikelets. Spikelets (3.5)-4-5-(6.5) mm, 3-6-(8)-flowered, light green often purpled. Glumes ± unequal, narrow-lanceolate to narrow-ovate, acute to subacuminate, keels and sometimes internerves scabrid; lower 1.5-2 mm, 1-3-nerved, upper 2-2.5 mm, 3-nerved; margins minutely scabrid. Lemma c. 2.5 mm, 5-nerved, elliptic-oblong, ± closely pubescent on lower ½, usually with slightly longer hairs on keel and marginal nerves, tip obtuse, short-ciliate. Palea 2-2.5 mm, keels scabrid above and finely ciliolate in lower ½, interkeel pubescent especially in lower ½. Callus glabrous or with a few long hairs. Rachilla c. 0.5 mm, with a few short hairs. Lodicules 0.4-0.6 mm. Anthers 1.2-1.5 mm. Caryopsis c. 1.5 × 0.5 mm.

S.: Nelson (Lake Rotoiti), Marlborough (between Blenheim and Cape Campbell). Lowland to montane grassland.

Naturalised from Australia.