Long-awn water grass
Echinochloa stagnina

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

An annual swamp millet grass. It grows 1-2 m high. It has long creeping rhizomes. It can lie over and form roots at the nodes. The leaf blade is 8-50 cm long by 6-10 mm wide. The flower arrangement is a narrow sword shape. It is 7-20 cm long.

There are about 35 Echinochloa species. They grow in tropical to warm temperate regions. The African samples may belong to Echinochloa scabra. It is an important fodder grass for Fulani.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It occurs as floating masses in several river basins. It grows in seasonally waterlogged and alkaline soils. It grows in wetlands. It grows between 1,000-2,100 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places. It grows in the Sahel.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Angola, Asia, Bangladesh, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Chad, Congo, Congo DR, East Africa, Egypt, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Kenya, Laos, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, North Africa, Pacific, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Sahel, SE Asia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Vietnam, West Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The succulent submerged stems are rich in sugar. This can be used for sugar or liquor. The sugary extract is used for making vinegar and a cider like drink. It is used in kreb a grain mixture eaten in Chad.

The stalks are chewed especially by children. The grain is used as a famine food.

Edible parts

Stems, shoots, seeds, cereal, sap

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Ahibary, Am sakine, Banti, Bontha oddu, Bourgou, Burgu, Dabhai hullu, Dul, Fringed cock's-spur grass, Gourgou, Helew, Hippo grass, Jhipa, Kadu, Queo

Synonyms

Panicum stagninum Retz.; Echinochloa scabra (Lam.) Roem. & Schult.;