About Capillipedium spicigerum S.T.Blake
Capillipedium spicigerum is a tufted perennial bunchgrass that does not produce stolons or rhizomes. Its culms, or stems, grow up to 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) in height and have hairy nodes. The lower leaf sheaths of this plant are covered in silky hairs. Its leaf blades measure 30โ40 cm (12โ16 in) in length and 5โ8 mm (0.20โ0.31 in) wide at the base. The plant's inflorescence, the collection of its flowers, is an open, purplish panicle that is 10โ20 cm (3.9โ7.9 in) long, with short racemes growing on slender branches. When crushed, the flowers give off a scent. The racemes hold 3 to 8 pairs of spikelets, with one spikelet of each pair being stalked and the other unstalked. This species flowers from late spring to autumn. A close relative of Capillipedium spicigerum appears to be C. mistryi A. P. Tiwari & Landge, which is found in India. Capillipedium spicigerum grows on low-fertility soils in roadsides, native pastures, and woodlands in Queensland, New South Wales, and the Northern Territory. This species is very drought tolerant and is readily grazed.
