Guadua Latifolia

If you are not familiar with the specific botanic terminology used to describe the characteristics of Guadua Latifolia, please use our bamboo glossary which helps you translate these terms into "human" language.

HABIT:

Perennial; caespitose.
Rhizomes short; pachymorph.
Culms erect; nodding at the tip; 300–1100 cm long; 50–130 mm diam.; woody; with root thorns from the nodes.
Culm-internodes terete; thin-walled, or thick-walled; 25–45 cm long; mid-green; smooth.
Lateral branches dendroid.
Bud complement 1.
Branch complement three.
Culm-sheaths deciduous.
Leaves 5–7 per branch.
Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface; outer margin hairy.
Leaf-sheath oral hairs setose; 5–10 mm long.
Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1 mm long.
Collar with external ligule.
Leaf-blade base cuneate, or broadly rounded; with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath; petiole 0.2–0.8 cm long.
Leaf-blades lanceolate, or ovate; 17–24 cm long; 25–45 mm wide.
Leaf-blade venation without cross veins.
Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or puberulous; hairy abaxially.
Leaf-blade margins ciliate.
Leaf-blade apex acuminate.

INFLORESCENCE:

Synflorescence bractiferous; scanty; axis 0–4 cm long; lax; with glumaceous subtending bracts; with axillary buds at base of spikelet; prophyllate below lateral spikelets.

FERTILE SPIKELETS:

Spikelets comprising 6–8 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex.
Spikelets linear; laterally compressed; 40–60 mm long; 6–8 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.
Rhachilla internodes obscured by lemmas.

FLORETS:

Fertile lemma ovate; 12–18 mm long; coriaceous; yellow, or light green; dull; without keel; 18–25 -veined.
Lemma lateral veins prominent.
Lemma surface glabrous, or puberulous.
Lemma apex acute; mucronate, or awned; 1 -awned.
Principal lemma awn 0.7–2 mm long overall.
Palea keels winged; conspicuously winged.
Palea apex ciliate.
Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.

FLOWER: