Agnesia

{{Short description|Genus of grasses}}

{{Speciesbox

|image =

|display_parents = 4

|genus = Agnesia

|parent_authority = Zuloaga & Judz.

|species = lancifolia

|authority = (Mez) Zuloaga & Judz.

|synonyms_ref = [http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=388082 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]

|synonyms = Olyra lancifolia Mez

}}

Agnesia is a genus of herbaceous South American bamboo in the grass family.{{cite web|url=http://delta-intkey.com/grass/www/agnesia.htm |title=The grass genera of the world: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval; including synonyms, morphology, anatomy, physiology, phytochemistry, cytology, classification, pathogens, world and local distribution, and references |accessdate=2009-08-19 |author=Watson L, Dallwitz MJ. |date=2008 |work=The Grass Genera of the World |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724223551/http://www.delta-intkey.com/grass/www/agnesia.htm |archivedate=2008-07-24 }}{{Cite web |title=RBG Kew: GrassBase - Agnesia Description |url=http://www.kew.org/data/grasses-db/www/gen00012.htm |access-date=2024-10-23 |website=www.kew.org}}

It is named in honor of agrostologist (botanical specialist in the area of grasses) Mary Agnes Chase (1869-1963).

The only known species is Agnesia lancifolia, native to lowland tropical rainforests of Brazil, Colombia and Peru.{{Cite web |title=Agnesia — The Plant List |url=http://www.theplantlist.org/1.1/browse/A/Poaceae/Agnesia/ |access-date=2024-10-23 |website=www.theplantlist.org}}

Agnesia lancifolia is perennial herb with 7-10 stems per clump, each up to 50 cm tall. Lower leaves lacking blades or with blades less than 5 mm long; upper leaves with blades up to 16 cm long. Each stem has 1-6 racemes at the tips of the culm or from the axils of the upper leaves, pistillate (female) and staminate (male) flowers in different spikelets on the same plant.[https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/14663#page/305/mode/1up Zuloaga, F. O. & E. J. Judziewicz. 1993. Agnesia, a new genus of Amazonian herbaceous bamboos (Poaceae: Bambusoideae: Olyreae). Novon 3(3): 306–309. ][https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28703024#page/55/mode/1up Mez, Carl Christian 1917. Novae species panicearum. Notizblatt des Botanischen Gartens und Museums zu Berlin-Dahlem 7(63): 45-78.]