Elephant grass, Napier grass
Pennisetum purpureum

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

A grass which keeps growing from year to year. It forms large clumps. It can grow 2-4 m tall. The leaf blades are 4 cm wide. The edges become very sharp. The flowers are dense and spike like. They are yellow, brown and purple.

There are about 100 Pennisetum species.

Where it is found

It is a tropical grass. It grows in sand and loam. It can grow in warm temperate areas. It does well in fertile soils with a rainfall or 1,000-1,500 mm per year. It grows below 2,300 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places. In Sichuan and Yunnan.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, American Samoa, Angola, Asia, Australia, Belize, Benin, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America, China, Colombia, Congo DR, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guiana, Guinea, Guinée, Guyana, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mauritius, Middle East, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norfolk Island, Oman, Pacific, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, St Helena, Sudan, Swaziland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad & Tobago, Uganda, USA, Venezuela, West Africa, West Indies, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The young shoots or leaves are added to soup. They are also stir fried. The stalks are reduced to ash and then the soluble and insoluble parts separated out with water to produce vegetable salt.

It is a commercially cultivated vegetable. It is only a minor food.

Edible parts

Flowers, shoots, vegetable

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from cuttings. It can also be grown by seeds or division of the clump.

Its other names

Local names

Achara, Agwoh, Azong grass, Balanco, Bibingu, Capim elefante, Litete, Mane, Nsenjere, Ntisong, Vao povi, Xiang cao

Synonyms

Pennisetum benthamii Steudel; Pennisetum flexispica K. Schumann; Pennisetum hainanense H. R. Zhao & A. T. Liu; Pennisetum macrostachyum Bentham, 1849, not (Brongniart) Trinius, 1834; Pennisetum nitens (Andersson) Hackel.;