The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Chionochloa australis

Etymology

Chionochloa: snow grass
australis: southern

Common Name(s)

carpet grass

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Not Threatened

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - Not Threatened
2004 - Not Threatened

Authority

Chionochloa australis (Buchanan) Zotov

Family

Poaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

CHIAUS

Structural Class

Grasses

Synonyms

Danthonia raoulii subsp. australis Buchanan; Danthonia australis (Buchanan) Buchanan

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: South Island (Nelson to Canterbury).

Habitat

A conspicuous upper montane to alpine species forming dense mats in herbfields, tussock grasslands, and occasionally cushion bogs.

Features

Compact, mat-forming grass with persistent, short leaves densely crowded in tight shoots among many old sheaths, and much shorter than flowering culms. Leaf-sheath to 70 mm, imbricate, persistent, entire, becoming fibrous and separating into two distinct layers when old, shiny, glabrous, long (7 mm) entangled hairs at apex usually spreading across proximate sheath, adaxially with antrorse, soft, internerve hairs to 0.25 mm; margins undulating and usually glabrous. Ligule to 1.5 mm, often obscured by hairs of sheath and leaf-blade. Leaf-blade to 100.0 × 0.8 mm, acicular junceous, persistent, navicular, ± terete, distichous rarely mono-stichous, abaxially shining, glabrous, adaxially with a dense weft of long hairs at base, hairs gradually becoming fewer and shorter above, usually projecting beyond leaf margin, abundant papillae above; margin smooth. Culm to 400 mm, internodes glabrous except for short hairs below nodes and long hairs below inflorescence. Inflorescence to 50 mm; 3-5 solitary spikelets on short, flexuous, long hairy, pulvinate branches. Spikelets of up to 8 often purpled florets. Glumes to 14 mm, glabrous, acute or mucronate, frequently purpled, > adjacent lemma lobes; lower 3-nerved, upper 5-nerved. Lemma to 5 mm; hairs dense at margin and erect aside main nerve, usually absent or fewer elsewhere, approximately equal to sinus; lateral lobes to 7 mm including awn up to 4 mm, sometimes shortly lobed again, glabrous except for prickle-teeth above; central awn to 15 mm, reflexed from flattened to strongly twisting column to 4 mm. Palea to 7 mm. Callus to 1 mm, hairs to 2.5 mm. Rachilla to 1 mm. Lodicules to 1 mm. Anthers to 4 mm. Ovary to 0.8 mm; stigma-styles to 3 mm. Seeds to 3 mm

Flowering

November - January

Fruiting

December - May

Propagation Technique

Easily grown from rooted pieces and fresh seed. Should be planted in a permanently moist soil, ideally in a cool or partially shaded situation. Dislikes humidity and will not tolerate drought.

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 42

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

Life Cycle and Dispersal

Florets are wind dispersed (Thorsen et al., 2009).

This page last updated on 15 Aug 2014