- Source: Anthoxanthum
Anthoxanthum (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colour of the mature spikelets.
The members of Anthoxanthum are widespread in temperate and subtropical parts of Africa and Eurasia, with a few species in tropical mountains. Some species have become naturalized in Australia, New Zealand, and the Americas. Anthoxanthum odoratum is a common species of acidic grassland and bogs in northern Europe. All the species reportedly contain the compound coumarin, used medicinally in many countries.
The genus Hierochloe is included in Anthoxanthum by some recent authors. Others, however, continue to treat them as separate genera, and we provisionally treat them as such here pending further research.
Species
Anthoxanthum aethiopicum - Ethiopia
Anthoxanthum amarum - Spain, Portugal
Anthoxanthum aristatum - Mediterranean and neighboring areas from Madeira and the Canary Islands to the Aegean
Anthoxanthum borii - India
Anthoxanthum dregeanum - Cape Province of South Africa
Anthoxanthum ecklonii- South Africa, Lesotho, Malawi
Anthoxanthum gracile - Mediterranean from Morocco to the Aegean
Anthoxanthum hookeri - Guizhou, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan, Bhutan, Nepal, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Myanmar
Anthoxanthum horsfieldii - Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Assam, Taiwan, Guizhou
Anthoxanthum japonicum - Honshu
Anthoxanthum madagascariense - Madagascar
Anthoxanthum nivale - mountains of central Africa (Zaïre, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania)
Anthoxanthum odoratum - widespread from Iceland to the Canary Islands to Mongolia; naturalized in North and South America, South Africa, Japan, East Asia, and various islands
Anthoxanthum ovatum - Mediterranean from Spain to the Aegean
Anthoxanthum pallidum - Sichuan, Yunnan
Anthoxanthum sikkimense - Nepal, Yunnan, Sikkim, Bhutan, Arunachal Pradesh
Anthoxanthum tongo - Cape Province of South Africa
formerly included
numerous species now considered better suited to other genera. Most important is Hierochloe; others include Centotheca Crypsis Dichelachne Dimeria Festuca Perotis Saccharum
See also
List of Poaceae genera