Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 51: 419 (1914).- Type : Mildbrad 7102, Fernando Po (holo- B).
Regional litterature: FI. Nigeria: 36 (1970); FWTA: 389 (1972); Gram. Cameroun: 130 (1992).
Description:
* Annual of 8-50 cm tall. Culms decumbent or prostrate. Leaves ascending, margins hairy, 1-6 cm long, 1-4 mm wide; ligule a fringe of hairs.
* Inflorescence an open panicle, elliptic or ovate, 5-20 cm long, 3-11 cm wide; branches spreading, stiff. Spikelets solitary pedicelled; pedicels oblong, 1-7 mm long.
* Spikelets comprising 3-20 fertile florets, ovate, 3-5.5 mm long and 1.7-2.5 mm wide, dark green, breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent, shedding paleas. Glumes deciduous, ovate, 1 mm long, keeled, keel scaberulous; lower glume acute; upper glume globose. Lemmas elliptical, flattened towars the edges, obtuse, dark green, shiny globose, 1.3-1.7 mm long, cartilaginous, keeled, 3 -veined, lateral veins obscure; palea orbicular, keels narrowly winged, scaberulous; apical florets underdeveloped. Anthers 2, 0.2 mm long. Caryopsis with adherent pericarp, ellipsoid, 0.5 mm long.
Vernacular names: Ngei (Oku).
Distribution West Africa: Nigeria, Cameroon.
Distribution world-wide: Equatorial Guinea (Fernando Po); introduced in Latin America.