Japanese name: オヒゲシバ Scientific name:Chloris virgata
[Overview]
An annual 30–50 cm tall, found on reclaimed land, in harbors and similar places.
It is hairless throughout; the stem branches at the base, creeps along the ground, and rises in the upper part.
The leaves are linear, about 0.4–0.7 cm wide, folded in two along the midrib, and the leaf sheaths are also flattened.
Branches (racemes) about 3–7 cm long are borne palmately at the stem tip, and because the branches stand upright, the flower spike does not open much.
A leaf grows just below the flower spike, and its leaf sheath is slightly swollen.
The spikelets are densely arranged on one side of the branch and consist of 2 florets; they are often tinged with purple and glossy.
The lemma of the first floret is obovate with an awn 1–1.5 cm long, while the second floret is reduced and its lemma is 1.5–2 mm long.
[History]
Discovered in Kumamoto in 1922, it is now naturalized from Honshu to Kyushu.
