西亚香茅 xi ya xiang mao

Andropogon olivieri Boissier, Diagn. Pl. Orient., ser. 1, 5: 76. 1844; A. ariani Edgeworth; Cymbopogon ariani (Edgeworth) Aitchison; C. ladakhensis B. K. Gupta.

Culms 20–40 cm tall; old basal sheaths only infrequently curling; ligule (1–)2–4 mm.

Mountain slopes, dry valleys; 2900–3500 m. W Xizang, Yunnan (Yuanmou) [Afghanistan, NW India, Pakistan; SW Asia (Iran, Iraq, Oman)].

This taxon is somewhat smaller than subsp. jwarancusa, and its distribution extends further westward from Pakistan. The basal parts are required for a positive identification. It has been confused in the past with Cymbopogon schoenanthus (Linnaeus) Sprengel, from Africa and Arabia, which has a swollen lowermost pedicel fused to the adjacent internode.