Chrysopogon fulvus

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Photographs by: Dr. Maulik Gadani

Botanical Name : Chrysopogon fulvus (Spreng) Chiov.
Chrysopogon is derived from chrysos means gold and pogon which means beard.
Synonyms : Andropogon sprengelii Kunth.
Common Name : Dongari Gavat
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 : Herb
Occurrence (Special Areas) : Indroda Park

Habit : A perennial herb.
Stem : Stems densely tufted, 30-120 cm high, usually slender, erect, simple or branched, leafy chiefly at the base, nodes glabrous.
Leaves : Linear, acute, flat, rigid, glaucous, smooth or scaberulous; sheaths, the upper terete, the lower compressed; ligule a very short ciliate membrane.
Inflorescence :
- Panicle, long, ovate or oblong, rachis slender, smooth branches, whorled, capillary, spreading at length, erect, racemes reduced to a single sessile female and 2 pedicellate spikelets. Sessile spikelets, bearded on one side with rufous hairs.
- Glumes 4; lower involucral long, linear, 2-toothed at the apex, 4-nerved; upper involucral glume ovate-lanceolate, concave, ciliate on the keel with rufous hairs with an awn, 3-nerved, lower floral glume oblong, obtuse, ciliate, upper floral glume narrowly linear, hyaline.
- Pedicellate spikelets as long as the sessile, ciliate, flattened; lower involucral glume lanceolate, acute or awned, 7-nerved; upper involucral-glume lanceolate, acuminate; floral glumes smaller, oblong, hyaline, ciliate.
Flowering and Fruiting Time : October