Teff
Eragrostis tef

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

A millet grass. It is an annual tufted grass. It grows 60-120 cm tall. It has a slender stem and long narrow smooth leaves. The flowers occur in loose open panicles. These are 15-35 cm long. The branches are very thin and droop over. The seeds are very small. They are 1-1.5 mm long. There are about 2500-3000 seeds per gram. A brown seeded and a white seeded kind are recognised.

The seeds have high food value. There are about 300 Eragrostis species. It is gluten free. It is a C4 plant. It contains no gluten.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. A drought resistant grass. It grows in places with a distinct dry season. It grows best at about 2000 m altitude in Ethiopia. The temperatures are about 25-28°C. It is grown from 1700 m to 2800 m. Brown teff is grown at the higher locations. The rainfall in this region is about 950-1000 mm. It can be grown with rainfall of 400 mm. Soils should be permeable. It can tolerate frost. It can grow in arid places. In Argentina it grows between 1,200-1,300 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Argentina, Asia, Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Britain, Canada, Central Africa, Congo, East Africa, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Europe, Fiji, France, Germany, Ghana, Guyana, India, Indochina, Japan, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Middle East, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, New Caledonia, North Africa, North America, Pacific, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, USA, West Africa, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

Seeds are ground into flour and cooked in a variety of ways. It can be used in stews. They are used to make unleavened bread. This is called injera in Ethiopia.

A staple food in some parts of Ethiopia. It is mostly eaten by the wealthier people. It is a cultivated food plant. It is grown on 2.5 million ha.

Edible parts

Seeds, cereal

How it is grown

Teff is best grown in fallowed land or after legume crops. Land preparation needs to be very thorough. A fine firm weed free seed bed is needed. Seed are mostly broadcast. Driving sheep or cattle over the land is used to trample in the seed. 25-30 kg of seed per hectare are recommended. Nitrogen fertiliser is recommended. It is usually harvested with sickles.

It is fast growing. Plants take between 90-120 days for early varieties and 120-160 days for late maturing varieties. Yields range between 300 and 3000 kg per hectare. Seeds can be stored for many years as a reserve food supply.

Its other names

Local names

Bousa, Ersho, Ethiopian lovegrass, Injara, Injera

Synonyms

Eragrostis abyssinica (Jacq.) Link; Poa abyssinica Jacq.; Poa tef Zuccagni;