Festuca novae-zelandiae (Hack.) Cockayne
Tufted intravaginally branching short leaved clumps bearing tall ± erect culms with narrow inflorescences of spikelets whose lemma margins are conspicuously hair fringed. Leaf-sheath 3-10 cm, open to base, keeled, striate, densely hairy to less so below; apical auricles 0 or small, shortly ciliate. Collar curved and thickened. Ligule 0.1-0.3-0.5 mm, finely ciliate. Leaf-blade 4-6-10 cm, plano-compressed, narrowing to midrib, ± firm, abaxially hairy or irregularly so, adaxially finely hairy more so above ligule; margins finely antrorsely scabrid; TS: 7 vascular bundles, sclerenchyma in 3-5 strands, one always subtending median bundle, occasionally continuous. Culm 20-40 cm, ridged, internodes smooth or short hairy and becoming smooth, often only inflorescence internode visible. Panicle 4-7-10 cm, narrow, of 8-12 nodes, 15-25 spikelets, branches solitary, short, ± erect, > internodes; basal branch 1.5-3.5 cm of 4-7 spikelets naked below, uppermost 6-7 spikelets solitary on short pedicels; rachis glabrous below becoming toothed on margins, branches finely scabrid, pedicels with many short hairs. Spikelets 5-12 mm, of 4-7 florets. Glumes unequal, keels toothed above, margins ciliate or hair fringed but sparsely so on lower glume; lower 2-3 mm, 1-nerved, narrow triangular acute, upper 3-4.5 mm, shortly awned, 3 conspicuous nerves. Lemma (3.75)-4.5-5.5 mm, lobes minute or 0, 5-nerved, rounded, upper margins conspicuously hair fringed, apex prickle-toothed elsewhere smooth or clothed in stiff hairs throughout or hairs shorter and fewer towards base; awn (0.5)-2-(3) mm. Palea (3.5)-4.5-5.5 mm,=lemma, apex shallowly bifid, keel toothed in upper ¼-⅔, interkeel hairy throughout or above. Callus 0.1-0.2 mm, very shortly bearded laterally or ± glabrous; articulation ± flat. Rachilla (0.6)-0.75-1.2 mm, with long stiff antrorse hairs. Lodicules 0.6-0.75 mm, lobed. Anthers (1.75)-2.5-2.75 mm, yellow occasionally purple. Gynoecium: ovary (0.5)-0.7-1 mm, glabrous, often with cap; stigma-styles (1)-1.5-2.5 mm, often sparsely branched. Caryopsis 2.5-3.5 mm; embryo 0.5 mm; hilum ≈ caryopsis.
N.: Auckland City; S.: occasional in inland basins from Marlborough to Otago; sporadic elsewhere. Grassland, waste places.
Naturalised from Europe.
Two forms may be found, and judged by herbarium representation they may co-occur. In one lemmas are hair-fringed on the upper margins and in the other lemmas are fully clothed in hairs; in an intermediate state very short hairs or potential hair sites occur on lower regions of the lemma. Once again based on herbarium representation, the form with densely hair-clothed lemmas is the more common. Hair-fringed glumes are coincident with hair-clothed lemmas.
The presence of any other naturalised subspp. of F. ovina is not indicated by herbarium specimens.
