Coix lacryma

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Photographs by: Dr. Maulik Gadani

Botanical Name : Coix lacryma-jobi L.
Coix is a name used by Theophrastus and Plinius for an Egyptian palm the leaves of which were used for mats and baskets. The name Lachryma Jobi means Job's Tear and comes from the fancied resemblance of the fruit to tears.
Synonyms : Coix agrestis Lour.,Coix pumila Roxb.
Common Name : Job's Tears, Christ's Tears, Gurgur
Plant Family : Poaceae (Gramineae)
According to the Rules of ICBN the names of the families should end in -aceae. Thus the new name for the family Gramineae became Poaceae. However, the name Gramineae is also exempted and conserved under 'Nomina Conservanda' because of their constant use for a long time.
Plant Form : Grasses
Occurrence (Special Areas) : Indroda Park

Habit : An annual grass.
Stem : Stout, rooting at the lower nodes; internodes smooth, polished.
Leaves : Narrowed from a broad cordate base to an acuminate tip, smooth on both surfaces, with slender nerves and spinulosely serrate margins; midrib stout; sheaths long, smooth; ligule a very narrow membrane.
Inflorescence :
- Racemes 2.5-6.3 cm long, nodding or drooping from long peduncles; rachis within the bract slender, above the bract stout, notched at the nodes.
- Male spikelets 1-1.3 cm long, subsecund, imbricating.
- Lower invulucral glume 1 cm long, elliptic-lanceolate, acute, concave, many-nerved, with inflexed margins and with a narrow wing arising from a little above the edgeof the margin with many branched green veins; upper involucral glume similar to the lower but not winged, 5-9 nerved; lower floral glume oblong-lanceolate, hyaline, paleate, triandrous, faintly 3-5 nerved; upper floral glume similar, paleate, triandrous or empty.
- Anthers 5 mm long, orange.
Fruit : Grain broadly ovoid to globose, bluish grey, 6-10mm, long, smooth, polished.
Significance : Used as fodder for cattle.