The tropical
grassPoaceae or Gramineae is a family in the Class Liliopsida of the flowering plants. Plants of this family are usually called grasses, or, to distinguish them from other graminoids, true grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo...
species
Pennisetum clandestinum is known by several common names, most often
kikuyu grass, as it is native to the region of
East AfricaEast Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
that is home to the
Kĩkũyũ tribeThe Kikuyu are Kenya's most populous ethnic group. 'Kikuyu' is the Swahilized form of the proper name and pronunciation of Gĩkũyũ although they refer to themselves as the Agĩkũyũ people....
. Because of its rapid growth and aggressive nature, it is categorised as a noxious weed in some regions. However, it is also a popular garden lawn species in Australia and South Africa because it is cheap and drought-tolerant.
The tropical
grassPoaceae or Gramineae is a family in the Class Liliopsida of the flowering plants. Plants of this family are usually called grasses, or, to distinguish them from other graminoids, true grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo...
species
Pennisetum clandestinum is known by several common names, most often
kikuyu grass, as it is native to the region of
East AfricaEast Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
that is home to the
Kĩkũyũ tribeThe Kikuyu are Kenya's most populous ethnic group. 'Kikuyu' is the Swahilized form of the proper name and pronunciation of Gĩkũyũ although they refer to themselves as the Agĩkũyũ people....
. Because of its rapid growth and aggressive nature, it is categorised as a noxious weed in some regions. However, it is also a popular garden lawn species in Australia and South Africa because it is cheap and drought-tolerant. In addition it is useful as pasture for livestock grazing.
Pennisetum clandestinum is a rhizomatous plant, in the
PoaceaePoaceae or Gramineae is a family in the Class Liliopsida of the flowering plants. Plants of this family are usually called grasses, or, to distinguish them from other graminoids, true grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo...
(grass) family, that has matted roots and a grass-like or herbaceous habit. The leaves are green, flattened or upwardly folded along the midrib, 10-150 millimetres long, and 1-5 mm wide. The apex of the leaf blade is obtuse. It occurs in sandy soil and reaches a height of between 70 to 150 millimetres. The species favours moist areas and frequently becomes naturalised from introduction as a cultivated alien. Rooted nodes send up bunches of grass blades. It is native to the low-elevation tropics of
KenyaThe Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. Lying along the Indian Ocean, at the equator, Kenya is bordered by Ethiopia , Somalia , Tanzania , Uganda plus Lake Victoria , and Sudan . The capital city is Nairobi. Kenya spans an area about 85% the size of France or Texas...
and environs, where it grows best in humid heat, such as the wet coastal areas.
The description of this species was published by
Emilio ChiovendaEmilio Chiovenda was an Italian botanist.He collected in Italy, Eritrea and Ethiopia, especially the he Ruwenzori Mountains, from 1893 to 1909....
in 1903, and acknowledges an earlier, unvalidated, description made by
C. F. HochstetterChristian Ferdinand Friedrich Hochstetter was a German botanist and Protestant minister who was a native of Stuttgart. He was the father of geologist Ferdinand Hochstetter ....
.
It has been introduced across Africa, Asia, Australia, the Americas, and the Pacific, where it is subject to eradication through management practices. The ease of cultivation, and the thickly matting habit, have made this species desirable for use as a
lawnA lawn is an area of recreational or amenity land planted with grass, and sometimes clover and other plants, which are maintained at a low, even height....
. The aggressive colonisation of natural habitat has resulted in this grass becoming naturalised in regions such
Southwest AustraliaSouthwest Australia is a biodiversity hotspot that includes the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregions of Western Australia. The region has a wet-winter, dry-summer Mediterranean climate, one of five such regions in the world...
. It has high invasive potential due to its elongate
rhizomeIn botany, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
s and
stolonIn biology, stolons are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external skeletons.-In botany:...
s, with which it penetrates the ground, rapidly forming dense mats, and suppressing other plant species. It grows from a thick network of rhizomatous roots and sends out stolons which extend along the ground.
It can climb over other plant life, shading it out and producing herbicidal toxins that kill competing plants. It prevents new sprouts of other species from growing, may kill small trees and can choke ponds and waterways. It is resistant to mowing and grazing due to its strong network of roots, which easily send up new shoots. It springs up in turfs and lawns, and can damage buildings by growing in the gaps between stones and tiles. The plant is easily introduced to new areas on plowing and digging machinery, which may transfer bits of the rhizome in soil clumps. While the grass spreads well via vegetative reproduction from pieces of rhizome, it is also dispersed via seed.