Ehrharta calycina Sm.

Erect, tufted perennials, 50–80 cm, with rather soft culms. Leaf-sheath finely striate, smooth, or rarely densely short-pubescent between nerves, often purplish. Ligule 1.5–3 mm, abaxially minutely pubescent-scabrid, lacerate. Collar deep purple-tinged, hairs few to c. 1.5 mm. Leaf-blade 4–15–(20) cm × 2–6 mm, flat, rather stiff, abaxially finely scabrid towards acute tip, adaxially glabrous, except for scattered hairs above ligule and near the closely scabrid margins. Culm c. 30–60 cm, sometimes slightly geniculate at base, nodes deep purple, internodes glabrous. Inflor-escence a rather narrowly branched panicle, (7)–15–25 cm; branches and pedicels almost filiform, glabrous, often purplish. Spikelets 5–7 mm, pale green to whitish, sometimes purple-tinged. Glumes ± equal and ± enclosing spikelet, 4–6 mm, 5–7-nerved, firmly membranous, elliptic-oblong, subobtuse to subacute, glabrous. Lemmas of Ø florets dissimilar in size and shape, hinge-like appendage at base, subcoriaceous, with long, straight hairs, lateral nerves faint; lower Ø lemma 4–5 mm, > hairs, 3–5-nerved, narrow-linear, tip subobtuse to slightly mucronate, callus hairs few; upper Ø lemma 5–6 mm, = hairs, 5–7-nerved, elliptic-oblong, with 2 minute, hyaline, oval flaps beside basal appendages, upper keel ± thickened and short-ciliate, tipped by a ± strong mucro to 1 mm. Lemma of ☿ floret 4–5 mm, 7–(9)-nerved, subcoriaceous, obtuse, awnless, glabrous to sparsely hairy. Palea hyaline, glabrous, except at base. Lodicules c. 1 mm, glabrous. Stamens 6; anthers 2.5–3.5 mm. Gynoecium: ovary 1.0 mm; stigma-styles 2 mm. Caryopsis c. 3 × 1 mm.

[From: Edgar and Connor (2000) Flora of New Zealand. Volume 5 (second printing).]