Hierochloe quebrada Connor & Renvoize (2009: 728)

Lema-Suárez, Irene, Sahuquillo, Elvira & Pimentel, Manuel, 2021, A revision of Hierochloe sect. Monoecia (Anthoxanthinae, Pooideae, Poaceae), Phytotaxa 478 (1), pp. 92-104 : 97

3. Hierochloe quebrada Connor & Renvoize (2009: 728) .

Type: — PERU. Department of Ancash: Ancash , 37 km east of Yungay, steep rocky slopes with shrubs and small trees, 4200 m a.s.l., 5 April 1988, S.A. Renvoize & S. Laegaard 5079 (holotype: K n.v.; isotypes: MO-04945250 digital image!, AAU n.v.) .

Description: Stems 60–100 cm. Caespitose, densely clumped, glabrous. Leaf-sheaths 10–20 cm, usually shorter than the internodes, ringed, scabrid. Ligules erose. Leaf-blades 20–40 cm × 5–10 mm, flat, coriaceous, stiff, ridged, scabrous and with the apex acute or acuminate. Panicle 10–20 × 1 cm, spiciform, linear. Rhachis scaberulous, branches puberulous. Spikelets 5–8.5 mm, linear to linear-ovate. Glumes ovate, scarious, 1–3-nerved, 1-keeled, glabrous, acute and often with a violet tinge. Lower glume 4.5–6.2 mm. Upper glume 5–6.5 mm. Lemmas of male florets elliptic, and with dorsally inserted awns. Lemma of lower male floret 4.5–6.1 mm; awn 0.2–1.5 mm, straight. Lemma of upper male floret 4.2–5.9 mm; awn 3–6.6 mm, geniculate. Lemma of apical female floret 3.4–4.5 mm, ovate, membranaceous, brown, shiny, 1-keeled, 3-veined and scaberulous on the central vein.

Leaf anatomy: Long cells 110 μm. Stomata (37.5 μm) and bulliform cells present in the adaxial epidermis, the former only at the bottom of grooves. Leaf section with approximately 18 quadrangular ribs. Median vascular bundle sheath complete and midrib not clearly differentiated. Subepidermal sclerenchyma continuous adaxially and abaxially.

Genome size and DNA-ploidy level: 2C = 18.87 pg, 6 x.

Habitat: Grassland on steep granitic and derived soils. 4000–4600 m a.s.l. ( Connor & Renvoize 2009).

Distribution: Central Andes of Peru, in Ancash region ( Connor & Renvoize 2009).

Phenology: March–April.

Specimens examined:— PERU. Department of Ancash: Recuay Prov.: Cordillera Blanca, 35 km NE of Catac on road towards Chavin de Huantar, 4140 m a.s.l., large granitic boulders with Polylepis and Buddleja , 21 March 1997, P.M. Peterson & N. Refulio Rodriguez 13844 (US-3423081).