The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Festuca multinodis

Etymology

Festuca: From the Latin festuca 'stem' or 'blade of grass'

Common Name(s)

creeping Fescue

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

Festuca multinodis Petrie et Hack.

Family

Poaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

FESMUL

Structural Class

Grasses

Synonyms

None

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: North Island (south-west Kaimanawa Mountains, north-west Ruahine Range, Manawatu Gorge, coastal from Cape Turnagain to Cook Strait); South Island (Marlborough Sounds, Kaikoura Ranges to Waipara, North Canterbury)

Habitat

Coastal, otherwise montane to alpine. On rocks, cliffs and bluffs. Often on limestone.

Features

Scrambling, prostrate, ± ascending or sometimes densely caespitose, glaucous grass with many-leaved vegetative shoots and inflorescences exceeding these. Branching extravaginal. Leaf-sheath 30-100 mm, glabrous, ribbed, manifestly broader than leaf-blade, becoming fibrous with evident white nerves; apical auricles 0.2-0.7 mm, rounded, ciliate. Ligule 0.2-0.5 mm, flat to ± triangular between auricles, ciliate. Collar scarcely or ± thickened. Leaf-blade 50.0-250.0 × 0.3-0.9 mm, weakly hexagonal and ribbed, often terete usually secund, glaucous, smooth except for prickle-teeth at apex, adaxially and on margins antrorsely short white hairy becoming less so above. Culm 200-500 mm, greatly exceeding leaf-blades, nodes brown to purple-brown usually geniculate, internodes glabrous. Panicle (25-200 mm, with 5-9 nodes, 6-25 spikelets; branches spreading erect or weakly so, occasionally ± divergent, binate or solitary, basal branch (10-100 mm of 3-6 spikelets, naked below or not naked below (especially in Cook Strait), uppermost 5-6 spikelets, imbricate, solitary on short pedicels; rachis prickle-toothed often glabrous below, branches and pedicels prickle-toothed (glabrous throughout in Cook Strait); frequently tortuous below. Spikelets 7-20 × 3-5 mm, of 4-9 stramineous florets. Glumes unequal, evidently keeled, linear-oblong narrowing abruptly to an acute or mucronate apex, glabrous but occasionally prickle-toothed on keel above, apex sometimes shortly or evidently ciliate, margins membranous, ciliate above; lower 2.5-4.5 mm, 1-nerved, upper 4-6 mm, 3-nerved. Lemma 5-6 mm, glaucous, apex shortly lobed or 0, 5-nerved, keeled, smooth except for prickle-teeth at base and extending from callus to outer nerve below, and on keel above; awn 0 or 0.5-1.5 mm. Palea 4.5-6.5 mm, greater than or equal to lemma, acute, shortly bifid, keels toothed towards apex, interkeel hairs above but sometimes to base, flanks short ciliate above. Callus 0.3-0.5 mm, upper margins shortly bearded, less so centrally; articulation ± oblique. Rachilla 1.0-1.3 mm, sparsely short stiff hairy. Lodicules 0.7-1.5 mm, bifid or lobed, usually glabrous but occasionally hair-tipped. Anthers 2.0-3.0 mm, yellow to orange. Ovary 0.6-1.0 mm, ± turbinate, apex glabrous or with hispid hairs; stigma-styles 1.5-2.5 mm. Seed 3.0-3.5 mm

Flowering

September - December

Flower Colours

Orange,Yellow

Fruiting

November - April

Propagation Technique

Easily grown from fresh seed and rooted pieces. Does well in a rockery, tolerant of full sun and shade but dislikes humidity of damp conditions.

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 56

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

Life Cycle and Dispersal

Florets are dispersed by wind, water and attachment (Thorsen et al., 2009).

This page last updated on 25 Sep 2014