Southern Crab Grass, Southern crabgrass
Digitaria ciliaris

Family: Poaceae or Gramineae

What it is like

Digitaria ciliaris is a ANNUAL growing to 0.6 m (2ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 0.6

Where it is found

Waste ground and cultivated fields all over Japan.

Cosmopolitan in warmer areas of the world.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed.

Countries/locations it is found in

Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Australia, Australian Northern Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Amazonas, Bahia, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba, Parana, Pernambuco, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, British Virgin Islands, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Anhui, China, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Zhejiang, Colombia, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, CÙte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, French Guiana, Gambia, Georgia (Republic of), Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, India, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Korea DPR, Korea Republic of, Laos, Latvia, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Madagascar, Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Uganda, UK, Ukraine, Uruguay, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zimbabwe.

How it is used

Food

Rating: 1

One report says the plant is edible but does not specify which part. A wild millet grass with possibly edible seeds.

Medicine

Rating: 0

Other

Rating: 2

Fodder/animal feed, Forage. Environmental: Agroforestry, Soil conservation. D. ciliaris cv. Red River is a high-yielding forage and conservation-type cultivar developed and released in 1988.

Fodder: Food given to the animals (including plants cut and carried to them) rather than forage for themselves.

How it is grown

A polymorphic species.

Propagating it: Seed

Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;

Habit: Annual

Hardiness: 7-10

Growth:

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

Shade: Semi-shade, no shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

This plant can be weedy or invasive. D. ciliaris is a typical weedy annual grass, flourishing mainly in disturbed, open areas, with full sun or partial shade. It is a widespread weed of annual and perennial crops, including pastures, in the tropics and sub-tropics. It is also abundant on roadsides and wasteland. Listed as a serious or principal weed of 11 countries, mainly in Asia and in a wide range of crops, including groundnut, cotton, rice, maize, sorghum, vegetables, pineapple, cassava and tea.

Its other names

Local names

Bamboo grass; blanket crabgrass; hairy crabgrass; Henry's crabgrass; large crabgrass; smooth crabgrass; summergrass; tropical finger grass. Spanish: frente de toro; fresadilla; hierba conejo; hierba estival; pangola; zacate de agua. Chinese: xian mao ma tang. Australia: crab grass; summer grass. Bhutan: chittrey banso; tampula. Brazil: capim tinga; capim-colchao; capim-de-roça; capim-milhá; milhá. Dominican Republic: grama dulce cimarrona; pata de cotorra; pendejuelo. Germany: aufsteigende fingerhirse; wimper- fingerhirse. India: malsa; malsh; suruwari. Indonesia: jampang jemprak; jampang pait; suket djrempak; sunbak gangrir. Japan: mehishiba. Java: genjeran; jelamparan; suket ceker ayam. Malaysia: cakar ayam. Mexico: zacate cangrejo; zacate velludo. Peru: gramilla; pasto colchón; pata de gallo. Philippines: baludyangan; saka-saka. Puerto Rico: pata de gallina; yerba de juey. Sri Lanka: arisi pul; guru tana. Thailand: jya-ma-tang; yah-tin-nok; ya-plongkhanok. Vietnam: tuc hinh leo.

Synonyms

D. marginata. Link. Panicum adscendens.