Compilation
Digitaria swynnertonii

Perennial, loosely cæspitose from rather slender descending or creeping rhizomes, stoloniferous; stolons covered with short ovate obtuse strongly nerved and appressedly hairy or glabrescent thin cataphylls, sometimes rather long and branching. Culms erect or subgeniculate or gently ascending, 1 to over 3 ft. high, slender to stout, glabrous, basal internodes often numerous, followed by 2 or 4 (rarely more) elongated internodes, the terminal by far the longest. Leaves usually numerous at the base, thin, subherbaceous, rather loose, the lower generally keeled and often distinctly laterally compressed, short or long, glabrous or hirsute to villous, the upper mostly glabrous or nearly so, more terete and tight; ligules scarious, truncate, crenulate, glabrous, up to 1 lin. long; blades linear to linear-lanceolate from an equally wide base, tapering to a fine point, 2 to over 1 ft. by 1 1/2–5 lin., the lowest often short, flat, rather firm, glaucous-green, glabrous or more or less appressedly hirsute to almost tomentose, margins finely cartilaginous, often crisped, slightly rough, midrib very slender, obscure above, prominent below, lateral nerves fine, close, often obscure. Racemes few to many (up to 15), suberect or oblique, digitate or subdigitate and sessile, on a more or less stout and angular mostly short common axis, rather stiff and dense, 3–5 or occasionally up to 9 in. long, green or tinged (sometimes richly) with purple; rhachis trigonous, slightly wavy, 1/4– 2/5 lin. wide, lateral angles narrowly winged or marginate, scabrid, internodes about 1 lin. long; pedicels 2-nate, filiform, angular, scaberulous, the longer 3/5– 3/4 (rarely 1) lin. long. Spikelets tightly appressed, imbricate to subimbricate, lanceolate-oblong to linear-lanceolate, acute or acutely acuminate, 1 1/4–1 1/2 lin. long, glabrous (at least apparently) or somewhat silky on the sides or ciliate-fimbriate. Lower glume a minute ovate acute or obtuse membranous scale; upper thin, lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, acute to acuminate, 6/10– 7/10 lin. long (excluding the apical hairs), 3-nerved, with usually appressed fine thin-walled obtuse-tipped hairs 1/5 lin. long (or if longer then also stiffer and subacute) between the nerves and along the margin. Lower floret corresponding in outline and size to the spikelet: valve rather firm, 7-nerved, nerves scaberulous, with fine lines of short hairs between the inner side-nerves and along the margins, the hairs often so closely appressed that the spikelets appear glabrous or the hairs of the inner lines mixed with or almost entirely replaced by yellowish acute at length rigidly spreading fine bristles up to over 1/2 lin. long; valvule and lodicules minute or the former up to 1/5 lin. long. Upper floret lanceolate, acutely acuminate, very slightly shorter than the lower, often purplish: valve thinly chartaceous. Anthers 1/2– 3/4 lin. long.