Lagurus ovatus
| Lagurus ovatus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| (unranked): | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Tribe: | Agrostideae |
| Genus: | Lagurus L. |
| Species: | L. ovatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Lagurus ovatus L. | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Lagurus is a genus of Old World plants in the grass family, native to the Mediterranean Basin and nearby regions, from Azores and the Canary Islands to Crimea and Saudi Arabia. It is also naturalized in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and scattered locations in the Americas.[1][2][3]
The only known species is Lagurus ovatus, commonly called hare's-tail,[4] hare's-tail grass or bunnytail.[5] It is also grown as an ornamental plant for its attractive flower panicles.[6]
Description
Lagurus ovatus is a clump-forming annual growing to 50 cm (20 in) tall by 30 cm (12 in) tall, with pale green grassy foliage and numerous short, oval green flowerheads, turning to a buff colour as they ripen, all summer long.[5][7][8]
Diagnostic features
- Awns are 8–20 mm.
- Leaves and sheaths are softly pubescent.
- Panicle measure 1–7 x 0.5–2 cm.
- Spikelets are 7–10 mm.
- Stems grow erect, up to 60 cm.
- Chromosomal number is (2n=14).
Distribution
Native to the Mediterranean and introduced into Britain, it is now thriving on sandy stretches in the islands of Guernsey and Jersey, occasionally found in Ireland and South Wales. It has become naturalized in County Wexford, Ireland, South Devon and West Sussex.[9]
This plant is known or likely to be susceptible to barley mild mosaic bymovirus.
Formerly included species
Species once considered part of Lagurus but now regarded as better suited to other genera (Cymbopogon, Imperata)
- Lagurus cylindricus - Imperata cylindrica
- Lagurus paniculatus - Cymbopogon nardus
- Lagurus schoenanthus - Cymbopogon schoenanthus
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
- ↑ Altervista Flora Italiana, genere Lagurus
- ↑ USDA Plants Profile: Lagurus
- ↑ "BSBI List 2007" (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 1405332964.
- ↑ Umberto Quattrocchi (2006). CRC world dictionary of grasses: common names, scientific names, eponyms, synonyms, and etymology. CRC Press. pp. 1177–. ISBN 978-0-8493-1303-5. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
- ↑ Tucker, G. C. Lagurus. Grass Manual. Flora of North America.
- ↑ Pink, A. (2004). Gardening for the Million. Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.
- ↑ Hubbard, C. E. (1968). Grasses, A Guide to Their Structure, Identification, Uses, and Distribution in the British Isles (2nd ed.). Penguin Books. p. 476.
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