How not to resist the spectacular rich burgundy foliage, the exceptionally long arching crimson plumes or the outstanding contrast provided with the surrounding plants and flowers. Pasture dieback is a condition killing large areas of sown and native grasses in. A low closely matting perennial, with numerous creeping rhizomes and slender to stout stolons with many very short internodes, rooting at the nodes, throwing up. A creeping, aggressive, course, perennial lawn grass spreading by runners stolons and rhizomes and.
It spreads via an extensive network of rhizomes and stolons, and smothers all. Australian consignments of pennisetum clandestinum seed can be endorsed free from striga asiatica without any evidence presented except for seed sourced from the mackay area which cannot be endorsed. It is a deep rooted, sod forming grass, spread by seed, rhizomes underground runners, and stolens above ground runners. Gramineae south australia poaceae queensland, new south wales, the act, victoria, tasmania, western australia and the northern territory. Kikuyu pennisetum clandestinum vro agriculture victoria. Kikuyu pennisetum clandestinum is regarded as an environmental weed in victoria, south australia, western australia, new south wales and queensland.
Article pdf available in livestock research for rural development 204 april 2008 with 3,790 reads. Cynodon dactylon, pennisetum clandestinum and many other turf grasses are susceptible to helminthosporium disease. Pennisetum x advena rubrum is a commonly sold plant that is often labeled as a cultivar of p. Cenchrus clandestinus pennisetum clandestinum is a creeping, matforming grass that originates from tropical eastern africa. Wildflowers, nps, samo nra pennisetum clandestinum. Indeed, it is currently understood that the challenges and hopes for sustainable uses of genetic resources are by far dependent on the understanding of the dynamics of biodiversity. Pennisetum clandestinum, a monocot, is a perennial grass that is not native to california. Pennisetum clandestinum paspalum paspalum dilatatum. Modelling the growth and utilisation of kikuyu grass pennisetum clandestinum under grazing. This rapidly growing, partially scrambling, rhizomatous plant is a favored, but overrated, rangeland grass. Growth of kikuyugrass pennisetum clandestinum under clipping. Individual affected plants merge to form small patches less than one metre. Kikuyu grass is a warm season perennial lawn grass adapted to irrigated areas of the lower deserts. Cenchrus clandestinus pennisetum clandestinum hochst.
Requiring very little care and providing striking color as well as graceful movement in the garden or patio, pennisetum setaceum rubrum has become a real favorite among gardeners. Pennisetum setaceum, commonly known as fountain grass, is a popular ornamental plant and has been planted widely in areas with warm, arid climates. Many pennisetum grasses are noxious weeds, including kikuyu grass p. Reproduction is primarily vegetative, by its extensive network of stolons and rhizomes. Consignments are to be free from pests, soil, weed seeds and extraneous material. Combating soil salinity with combining saline agriculture and.
Phylogenetic studies favour the unification of pennisetum, cenchrus. Eleven potted lepidium oleraceum cooks scurvy grass plants were provided by department of conservation to carry out the tests. Pennisetum clandestinum is a lowgrowing stoloniferous perennial, to 30 cm tall. Fact sheet pennisetum clandestinum tropical forages. Fountain grass has become invasive in hawaii and the southern continental united states, australia, the canary islands, southern europe, and. It gets its common name, kikuyu grass, from the fact that it is native to the area in which the kikuyu tribe live. It is palatable, resistant to heavy grazing and mostly used for pasture. Elimination of kikuyu grass pennisetum clandestinum l. Evaluation of nine cultivars of bahiagrass, bermudagrass and kikuyugrass as alternatives to pensacola bahiagrass in the low altitude region of kyushu. Pennisetum clandestinum is a rhizomatous grass with matted roots and a grasslike or herbaceous habit. Sheath closely overlapping, almost membranous, 1020 mm long, pale green when young and turn brown with age, merge into the blade.
Limited pennisetum clandestinum is classified by the u. It will only flower and set seed under certain conditions, such as defoliation. Pennisetum, genus of the grass family poaceae, containing about 80 species of annual and perennial plants native to tropical and subtropical areas. Herbicide control of kikuyu grass pennisetum clandestinum. Goodin, research assistant the continuous uncontrolled spread of pennisetum clandestinum has called for increased interest in attempts to find some means of control, or at least inhibition. Globally, kikuyu pennisetum clandestinum and paspalum paspalum dilitatum would be the two most important tropical grasses used for dairy cows, with other species such as rhodes grass chloris gayana, setaria setaria sphacelata, the panics e.
Pennisetum is from the latin penna meaning feather and seta meaning bristle and refers to the feather like bristles on the flowers, of some species in this genus. Not showing much growth until late spring, they are fine companions for. Growth of kikuyugrass pennisetum clandestinum under. Abstract kikuyu grass pennisetum clandestinum hoechst ex chiov, is the more utilized forage on dairy cattle specialized herds in the colombian andes. The domestication process as it occurred in the primary gene pool of pennisetum glaucum is the main thread of this chapter. Pennisetum is from the latin penna meaning feather and seta meaning. It is a difficult species to produce seed and until recently it was. Plants profile for pennisetum clandestinum kikuyugrass.
Pennisetum advena foreign fountaingrass pennisetum alopecuroides chinese fountaingrass pennisetum ciliare buffelgrass pennisetum clandestinum kikuyugrass pennisetum complanatum nicaraguan fountaingrass. Pennisetum clandestinum an overview sciencedirect topics. Pennisetum clandestinum kikuyu grass this plant can be weedy or invasive according to the authoritative sources noted below. Most of the work up to this date has been in the control of vegetative growth. Full article pdf usda, ars, germplasm resources information network. Red witchweed striga asiatica is recognised as not occurring in any australian states and territories except the mackay area of queensland. Pennisetum a genus of old world grasses genus pennisetum liliopsid genus, monocot genus genus of flowering plants having a single. Pennisetum clandestinum synonyms, pennisetum clandestinum pronunciation, pennisetum clandestinum translation, english dictionary definition of pennisetum clandestinum.
Determination of combining ability and analysis of heterosis in pollen. Kikuyugrass pennisetum clandestinum management in turf. Pdf modelling the growth and utilisation of kikuyu grass. It is native to the highlands of eastern africa but has been widely introduced elsewhere for forage and for soil conservation. The plants database includes the following 21 species of pennisetum. The most well known of the pennisetums, pennisetum setaceum rubrum, commonly called purple fountain grass, is the showiest of the genus, though all species are quite ornamental in form, texture, and coloring they are especially effective in mass plantings or drifts, or as a focal point in decorative containers. Pdf effects of salinity on growth, carbohydrate metabolism and. Cultivated residential lawn turf occasionally escaped where moisture adequate, aug 2009. Stem and leaves plants are a network of horizontal manyjointed stems i. Valor nutricional del pasto kikuyo pennisetum clandestinum hoechst ex chiov. Pdf the objective of this study was to investigate the effect of salinity on growth, nutritive.
Pennisetum purpureum an overview sciencedirect topics. It has spread by seed into natural areas from cultivated plants. This plant may be known by one or more common names in different places, and some are listed above. The production potential of kikuyu pennisetum clandestinum pastures over sown with ryegrass lolium. Daphne species are infected by the leaf spot gloeosporium mezerei and marssonina daphnes both of which form thickish brown spots that are seen on both sides of the leaves. The flowering culms are very short and hidden amongst the leaves, giving this species its specific epithet clandestinum. This grass has been used widely as a pasture and turfgrass plant, and for erosion control. Although it is usually grazed without ill effect, spasmodic incidents of poisoning in cattle 1 and, to a much lesser extent, sheep 2 and goats, 3. The clandestine flowering of kikuyu grass pennisetum clandestinum.
Recommended to mulch stem periodically or graze intensively with drystock to decrease. Ii, regrowth characteristics in relation to nitrogen fertilization and climate hawaii agricultural experiment station. Pearl millet pennisetum glaucum, an annual species, is cultivated in tropical areas for its edible grain. Pennisetum clandestinum hochstetter ex chiovenda, annuario reale ist. Variation and breeding of kikuyu grass pennisetum clandestinum. Kikuyu pennisetum clandestinum shoots were collected and established in pots for 3 weeks so that new shoots were actively growing prior to herbicide application. Kikuyu is a vigorous, prostrate, rhizomatous and stoloniferous perennial that spreads readily and forms dense swards ecocrop, 2010. Pennisetum clandestinum seed department of agriculture. Original and official translation of the phytosanitary import conditions must be presented to the department of agriculture authorised and water resources officer at the time of making appointment. Prefers sandy soils of lowland areas, and has failed to thrive in very heavy soils, dry areas and cooler montane zones walsh and entwisle 1994. Kikuyo, kikuyu, grama gruesa, pasto africano pennisetum. The optimum temperature for growth is between 16 and 21c, with growth declining markedly at high temperatures and below 7c. Department of agriculture agricultural research service. It is a serious pest in forests because, apart from shading out shrubs and herbs, it releases allelopathic substances which kill almost all other species in the vicinity sanchez and.
It occurs in sandy soil and reaches a height of between 70 and. As forage matures there is an increase in the proportion of leaf sheath and flowering stem, which have a lower cp than the leaf fraction. The herbage and seeds of these grasses are food for herbivores, such as the chestnutbreasted mannikin lonchura castaneothorax, the caterpillar of the butterfly melanitis phedima, and the larvae of the fly genus delia. A spreading rhizomatous and stoloniferous perennial that roots at the. Pennisetum clandestinum in the germplasm resources information network grin, u. In pennisetum purpureum cut every 4 or 12 weeks the cp concentrations were 98 and 61 gkg dm, respectively paterson, 1933. In the lowland subtropics, this translates to best growth occurring in spring and autumn, moisture permitting, with depressed growth in the heat of summer and during winter. Click below on a thumbnail map or name for species profiles.