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Arundo fulvida, n. s.
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Plant forming tussocks of close-growing leaves and culms. Leaves coriaceous, 5–6 feet long, narrow, with long, attenuate curving points, entire, and smooth, without cutting edges, upper surface covered more or less with long, silky hairs. Culms few, 4–6 feet long, with erect, broad, compacted, pale fulvous panicles, 12–18 inches long. Spikelets 1–2, flowered, closely arranged on capillary pedicels, empty glumes 1/3 inch long, nearly equal; flowering glumes two-thirds as long, not bifid at the points, but terminated by a slightly twisted not included awn.
The Arundo conspicua, of the New Zealand Flora and Handbook, has been at various times differently named by different botanists, and Baron von
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Mueller, in his criticism of the genus (Chatham Island Flora), thinks it probable that some of them may have been describing varieties of the species, Dr. Hooker, again, in not recognizing more than one species, seems to consider the others not founded on sufficient data. It is, therefore, with some hesitation that the present is advanced as more than a variety. The differences, however, between this plant and Arundo conspicua are so great, particularly in its low habit of growth and dense-flowered, erect, fulvous panicle, that it has for many years attracted attention, and indeed some species of Agrostis and Poa rest on less distinction.
Collected by Dr. Menzies on the Mataura River, Otago, in 1867; and by J. Buchanan at Wellington Heads, in 1873.