Themeda caudata (Nees ex Hook. & Arn.) A. Camus

This is a tall reed-like grass growing on the hillsides.

The name "Themeda gigantea var. caudata (Nees) Keng" (Fl. Ill. Pl. Prim. Sin. Gram. 845. 1959) belongs here, but was not validly published because no Latin description was provided.

Culm tall, up to 1 m high, about 1 cm in diameter, hard, shiny. Blade about 5 mm wide; ligule truncate, about 1 mm long, ciliate on the back and upper margin. Spikelets several in compound false panicle, interrupted by involucres; racemes subtended by 2 pairs of empty spikelets at base. Upper spikelet shortly pedicelled, awnless. Lower spikelet about 10 mm long, slightly shorter than the upper. Glumes coriaceous, densely covered with golden hairs on back; the lower lanceolate, about 8 mm long, 12-nerved, tessellate-nerved; the upper linear, as long as the spikelet, margins inrolled and glabrous; lower lemma lanceolate, margins fimbriate; upper lemma becoming a long awn of about 4.5 cm long; palea oblong, 2-nerved, about 2 mm long.

Perennial. Culms tufted, robust, 1–3 m tall, 0.5–1 cm in diam. Leaf sheaths glabrous, basal sheaths strongly compressed; leaf blades 20–80 × 0.5–1 cm, scabrid, midvein distinct, narrowed to subrounded at base, acuminate; ligule subrounded, ca. 1 mm, ciliate. Compound panicle large, much branched, branches bearing several spathes, each spathe subtending a further spathe and up to 3 spatheoles with racemes; spatheoles 2.5–5 cm, minutely scaberulous-puberulous; peduncle pilose at apex. Raceme composed of 1(–2) spikelet pairs and a terminal triad above the involucre of 2 homogamous pairs. Homogamous spikelets arising at slightly different levels, 12–15 mm, linear-lanceolate, wingless, minutely scaberulous-puberulous. Sessile spikelet 6–7.5 mm; callus 2–3 mm, acuminate; lower glume dorsally compressed, oblong-lanceolate, densely golden strigose; upper lemma stipitiform; awn 4–8 cm. Pedicelled spikelet 12–15 mm, male or barren. Fl. and fr. Jul–Dec.

Nepal, N. India, Burma, Indo-China, China.

Distributed in India, Burma, Vietnam to China.

Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Xizang, Yunnan, Zhejiang [Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam].

700-2100 m

Dry hillsides, forest margins; 400–2500 m.

Themeda caudate (Nees) A. Camus var. matsudai Honda, Bot. Mag. Tokyo, 40: 108. 1926; Hsu, Fl. Taiwan 5: 703. 1978.

Anthistiria caudata Nees in Hooker & Arnott, Bot. Beechey Voy. 245. 1838; A. gigantea Cavanilles subsp. caudata (Nees) J. D. Hooker; Themeda gigantea (Cavanilles) Hackel subsp. caudata (Nees) Hackel.

Themeda caudata là một loài thực vật có hoa trong họ Hòa thảo. Loài này được (Nees ex Hook. & Arn.) A.Camus miêu tả khoa học đầu tiên năm 1922.

苞子草（学名：Themeda caudata），为禾本科菅属下的一个植物种。