G.487. Urochloa P. Beauv.

BRACHIARIA (Trin.) Griseb.

PSEUDOBRACHIARIA Launert

Description of the genus

Annuals or perennials. Leaves: lamina linear or lanceolate; ligule a line of hairs. Inflorescence of racemes borne upon a short common axis; spikelets single and abaxial or paired. Spikelets lanceolate to ovate, plano-convex, cuspidate to acuminate; lower glume mostly shorter than spikelet; upper glume as long as spikelet, usually membranous; lower floret male or sterile, lower lemma resembling upper glume; upper lemma obtuse, mucronate.

Derivation of name: from Greek: ouro meaning a tail; chloa meaning grass, possibly referring to the mucronate upper lemma

Comment: This now includes all species formerly placed in Brachiaria.

Worldwide: 103 species in the Old World tropics

Malawi: 17 taxa.

Urochloa trichopus

Links to taxa:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesFZ divisionsContent
arrecta (Hack. ex T.Durand & Schinz) Morrone & ZuloagaC,SDescription, Image
bovonei (Chiov.) A.M.Torres & C.M.MortonN,C,SDescription, Image
brizantha (A.Rich.) R.D.WebsterN,C,SDescription, Image
comata (Hochst. ex A.Rich.) SosefDescription
deflexa (Schumach.) H.ScholzN,C,SDescription, Image
dictyoneura (Fig. & De Not.) VeldkampN,CDescription
echinolaenoides Stapf N
eminii (Mez) DavidseN
grossa (Stapf) Oulo, Zon & SosefNDescription
jubata (Fig. & De Not.) SosefCDescription
oligotricha (Fig. & De Not.) HenrardNDescription
panicoides P. Beauv.C,SDescription, Image
ramosa (L.) T.Q.NguyenSDescription
serrata (Thunb.) SosefN,C,SDescription, Image
subulifolia (Mez) Torres Gonz. & C.M.MortonN,C,SDescription
trichopus (Hochst.) StapfNDescription, Image
umbellata (Trin.) Oulo, Zon & SosefDescription

Other sources of information about Urochloa:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Urochloa
Flora of Burundi: Urochloa
Flora of Caprivi: Urochloa
Flora of the DRC: Urochloa
Flora of Mozambique: Urochloa
Flora of Rwanda: Urochloa
Flora of Zambia: Urochloa
Flora of Zimbabwe: Urochloa

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Urochloa
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Urochloa
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Urochloa
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Urochloa
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Urochloa
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Urochloa
JSTOR Plant Science: Urochloa
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Urochloa
Plants of the World Online: Urochloa
Tropicos: Urochloa
Wikipedia: Urochloa

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-25

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2025). Flora of Malawi: Genus page: Urochloa.
https://www.malawiflora.com/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=198, retrieved 5 December 2025

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