Sporobolus africanus
Rat-tail GrassCoarse tufted perennial, culms erect, to 70 cm high. Leaves very tough, smooth and glabrous, or sparsely ciliate along lower margins; blade flat or slightly channelled, to 20 cm long and 6 mm wide; ligule rudimentary. Inflorescence a slender, dense, spike-like panicle, to 20 cm long, with numerous short, erect, overlapping branches. Spikelets 2–2.5 mm long, greyish or purplish green; glumes membranous, the lower obtuse, c. 0.5 mm long, the upper broadly acute, 1–1.5 mm long; lemma obtuse, membranous, shining, often cleft in two along the midline; palea slightly shorter than lemma. Spikelets hardly gaping about the elliptic c. 1.2 mm long grain at maturity. Flowers mainly Nov.–Jun.
MuM, Wim, GleP, Brid, VVP, VRiv, MuF, GipP, OtP, WaP, Gold, CVU, GGr, DunT, NIS, EGL, EGU, WPro, HSF, OtR, Strz, VAlp. Naturalised in all States. In Victoria, largely confined to near-coastal areas where often abundant along road verges, rough lawns etc., but occasional in the north of the State near the Murray River (e.g. near Walwa, Cobram and Cohuna).
Walsh, N.G. (1994). Poaceae. In: Walsh, N.G.; Entwisle, T.J., Flora of Victoria Vol. 2, Ferns and Allied Plants, Conifers and Monocotyledons, pp. 356–627. Inkata Press, Melbourne.
