Rottboellia

Itch grass
Rottboellia cochinchinensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Panicoideae
Supertribe: Andropogonodae
Tribe: Andropogoneae
Subtribe: Rottboelliinae
Genus:
L.f. 1782 not Host 1801 nor Rottboelia Scop. 1777
Type species
Rottboellia exaltata
L.f.
Synonyms[1]
  • Cymbachne Retz.
  • Robynsiochloa Jacq.-Fél.
  • Stegosia Lour.

Rottboellia (commonly called itch grass)[2] is a genus of African, Asian, and Australian plants in the grass family.[3][4][5]

The genus was named in honour of Danish botanist Christen Friis Rottbøll (1727-1797).

Species

24 species are accepted.[6]

  • Rottboellia afraurita Stapf – tropical Africa
  • Rottboellia aurita Steud. – southeastern Mexico, Central America, northern South America, and central Brazil and Bolivia to northeastern Argentina
  • Rottboellia balansae Hack. – Bolivia, west-central Brazil, Paraguay, and northeastern Argentina
  • Rottboellia campestris Nutt. – central and southeastern United States
  • Rottboellia cancellata Ridl. – Bangka, Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam
  • Rottboellia clarkei Hack. – India and Myanmar
  • Rottboellia cochinchinensis (Lour.) Clayton - Africa, Asia, Australia
  • Rottboellia coelorachis G.Forst. - New Caledonia, Vanuatu
  • Rottboellia geminata Hack. – Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, and southeastern Borneo
  • Rottboellia glandulosa Trin. – Indochina, Malesia, and New Guinea
  • Rottboellia goalparensis Bor - Assam
  • Rottboellia helferi Hook.f. – Indochina and Peninsular Malaysia
  • Rottboellia impressa Griseb. – western Cuba
  • Rottboellia laevispica Keng - Anhui, Jiangsu
  • Rottboellia lepidura (Stapf) Pilg. – Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique
  • Rottboellia paradoxa de Koning & Sosef - Philippines
  • Rottboellia parodiana (Henrard) Burkart – Paraguay and northeastern Argentina
  • Rottboellia purpurascens Robyns - tropical Africa
  • Rottboellia rottboellioides (R.Br.) Druce – Philippines, New Guinea, and northern and eastern Australia
  • Rottboellia rugosa Nutt. – south-central and southeastern United States from Texas to New Jersey
  • Rottboellia selloana Hack. – southern Brazil, northeastern Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay
  • Rottboellia striata Nees ex Steud. – central Himalayas to Indochina and south-central China
  • Rottboellia tessellata Steud. – southeastern United States, from Louisiana to Florida and Georgia
  • Rottboellia tuberculosa (Nash) Hitchc. – Cuba and southeastern United States (Alabama, Florida, and Georgia)


Formerly included[1]

Numerous species now considered better suited to other genera: Chasmopodium, Coelorachis, Elionurus, Eremochloa, Festuca, Glyphochloa, Hainardia, Hemarthria, Henrardia, Heteropholis, Ischaemum, Lasiurus, Lolium, Loxodera, Manisuris, Mnesithea, Muhlenbergia, Ophiuros, Oropetium, Parapholis, Phacelurus, Pholiurus, Ratzeburgia, Rhytachne, Schizachyrium, Spartina, Stenotaphrum, Thaumastochloa, Urelytrum and Xerochloa.

References

  1. ^ a b Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  2. ^ Atlas of Living Australia, itch grass, Rottboellia cochinchinensis (Lour.) Clayton
  3. ^ Linnaeus, Carl von. 1782. Supplementum Plantarum 13-14, 114.
  4. ^ Tropicos, Rottboellia L. f.
  5. ^ Flora of China Vol. 22 Page 644 筒轴茅属 tong zhou mao shu Rottboellia Linnaeus f., Suppl. Pl. 114
  6. ^ "Rottboellia L.f." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 30 May 2025.