Papyrus. Papyrus sedge
Cyperus papyrus

Family: Cyperaceae

What it is like

Cyperus papyrus is an evergreen Perennial growing to 5 m (16ft) by 0.3 m (1ft in) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers wet soil and can grow in water.

Height (m): 5

Where it is found

Often forms vast stands in swamps, shallow lakes, and along stream banks throughout Africa. It is considered a weed in the Sudan, Dahomey and Egypt.

Tropical Africa and Madagascar.

Conservation Status: Status: Least Concern

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Asia, Australia, Benin, Botswana, Central Africa, Central America, Chad, Congo R, Costa Rica, C?te d'Ivoire, East Africa, Egypt*, Fiji, Gabon, Greece, Guinea, Guin?e, Hawaii, Indochina, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Laos, Liberia, Madagascar, Mediterranean, Middle East, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nigeria, North Africa, Oman, Pacific, Palestine, Rwanda, SE Asia, Senegal, South Africa, Southern Africa, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Uganda, USA, West Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

How it is used

Food

Rating: 2

The pith of the stem was recommended for food in ancient Egypt. Rhizomes and lowermost parts of the stems - raw or cooked. They can also be chewed, sucked, and spat out, much as sugar cane is done.

Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.

Stem: this often intergrades into leaves.

Medicine

Rating: 2

Papyrus had a number of medicinal applications in the past, though it is little, if at all, used nowadays. The pith was recommended for widening and drying of fistula. The main use seems to have been confined to burnt papyrus sheets, the ash of which was reputed to have the action of pulverised charcoal and was used in the treatment of certain eye diseases. The ash was also said to check malignant ulcers from spreading in the mouth or elsewhere. It was also said that, if macerated in vinegar and then burnt, the ash would heal wounds.

Other

Rating: 2

The fibrous pith of the stems has been utilized for making paper. For making paper, the fibrous covering is stripped off the stem and the inner pith is split into wafer-like strips. These strips are then laid side by side, with others placed crosswise on top; the strips are dampened then pressed so that their glue-like sap cements them together. They are then dried into a sheet.. The plant was also traditionally used to make formal bouquets funeral garlands, boats, cordage, fans, sandals, matting, corkage, boxes, and paper. Papyrus stems can be used for caulking seams in wooden ships. Papyrus mats are used for making fences and huts. The rhizomes are cut into sections and used as beads.

Historic Crop: These crops were once cultivated but have been abandoned. The reasons for abandonment may include colonization, genocide, market pressures, the arrival of superior crops from elsewhere, and so forth.

Industrial Crop: Biomass: Three broad categories: bamboos, resprouting woody plants, and giant grasses. uses include: protein, materials (paper, building materials, fibers, biochar etc.), chemicals (biobased chemicals), energy - biofuels

Management: Hay: Cut to the ground and harvested annually. Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Regional Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

Historic Crop: These crops were once cultivated but have been abandoned. The reasons for abandonment may include colonization, genocide, market pressures, the arrival of superior crops from elsewhere, and so forth.

Industrial Crop: Biomass: Three broad categories: bamboos, resprouting woody plants, and giant grasses. uses include: protein, materials (paper, building materials, fibers, biochar etc.), chemicals (biobased chemicals), energy - biofuels

Management: Hay: Cut to the ground and harvested annually. Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Regional Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.

How it is grown

A plant of the subtropics to the tropics. It can tolerate a mean annual precipitation in the range 100 - 4,200mm, and a mean annual temperatures of 20 - 30?c. Succeeds in full sun and in partial shade. Prefers a fertile, wet soil, or shallow water up to 30cm deep. The plant can tolerate a pH in the range 6.0 - 8.5. Plants can spread rapidly by means of their rhizomes. Many African swamps are dominated by papyrus thickets, which totally block navigation. It is estimated that the swamp areas of the White Nile, and the 'Papyrus Swamps' around Lake Kioga and Victoria are responsible for the loss of 50% of that river's water through evaporation and plant transpiration. Plants can flower throughout the year.

Propagating it: Seed - Division.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Perennial

Hardiness: 9-12

Growth: Fast

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Wet, water

Things to keep in mind

Considered a weed in the Sudan, Dahomey and Egypt.

Its other names

Local names

Paper-rush, Paper-reed, Papirus, Uloko, Umufuunzo, Papyrus sedge, Indian matting plant, Nile grass

Synonyms

Chlorocyperus papyrus (L.) Rikli Cyperus antiquorum (Willd.) Chiov. Cyperus elapses Chiov. Cyperus imerinensis Boeckeler Cyperus madagascariensis (Willd.) Roem. & Schult. Cyperus nyassicus Chiov. Cyperus panormitanus Chiov. Cyperus papyraceus Crantz Cyperus siculus Chiov. Cyperus syriacus Parl. Cyperus ugandensis Chiov. Cyperus zairensis Chiov. Papyrus antiquorum Willd. Papyrus domesticus Poir. Papyrus madagascariensis Willd. Papyrus mossambicensis Parl. Papyrus siculus Parl.