Tripsacum floridanum

Tripsacum floridanum

Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Monocots
(unranked): Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Panicoideae
Genus: Tripsacum
Species: T. floridanum
Binomial name
Tripsacum floridanum
Porter ex Vasey

Tripsacum floridanum is a species of grass known by the common name Florida gamagrass.[1] It is native to Cuba and to Florida in the United States.[2][3][4]

This grass grows from a short, thick rhizome and produces stems up to a meter tall. It may produce one stem or a small clump of stems. The leaves are up to 60 centimeters long and 1 to 15 millimeters wide. The inflorescence contains both male and female spikelets.[4]

This grass grows in pine woods, often in moist areas.[4] It often grows near Pinus elliottii var. densa.[5] Though uncommon in general, the grass is "moderately common in Everglades National Park."[5]

This species is grown as an ornamental plant.[4]

Genus Tripsacum is related to maize (Zea mays).[6] Species of Tripsacum, especially T. floridanum, have been crossed with maize to produce a corn that is resistant to Helminthosporium turcicum, the fungus that causes northern leaf blight in the crop.[2][7]

References

  1. "Tripsacum floridanum". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
  2. 1 2 Tripsacum floridanum. Center for Plant Conservation.
  3. Tripsacum floridanum. Germplasm Resources Information Network.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Tripsacum floridanum. Grass Manual Treatment.
  5. 1 2 Tripsacum floridanum. Nature Serve.
  6. Tantravahi, R. V. (1971). Multiple character analysis and chromosome studies in the Tripsacum lanceolatum complex. Evolution 25(1) 38-50.
  7. Hooker, A L. (1981). Resistance to Helminthosporium turcicum from Tripsacum floridanum incorporated into corn. Maize Genet Coop Newsl 55: 87–88.
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