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[Wiki]-2Family: Poaceae -Grass
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Habitat / Range
Dry to mesic waste places in the lowland zone; rare in SW BC (Vancouver area); introduced from Eurasia and N Africa.
Origin Status: Exotic
Cynodon dactylon is an evergreen Perennial growing to 0.3 m (1ft) by 0.5 m (1ft 8in) at a medium rate.
It is hardy to zone (UK) 7. It is in leaf 12-Jan It is in flower from Aug to October, and the seeds ripen from Sep to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid, very alkaline and saline soils.
It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.
General: Perennial grass from elongate, scaly rhizomes; stems erect, 10-30 cm tall, the aerial stems decumbent and freely rooting.
Leaves: Sheaths open, the collars and throats long-hairy; blades mostly 1.5-3 (5) mm wide, flat, short; ligules with membranous base scarcely 0.3 mm long, fringed with straight hairs 2-4 mm long.
Flowers: Inflorescence of 4 or 5 digitate, terminal spikes up to 5 cm long; spikelets unstalked, borne in 2 rows on one side of the rachis, articulating above the glumes, usually 1-flowered; glumes about equal, narrow, 1-nerved; lemmas about 2 mm long, longer than the glumes, strongly compressed; paleas nearly as long as the lemmas, 2-nerved; rachillas prolonged and bristlelike, very occasionally bearing rudimentary second flowers; lodicules 2, more or less wedge-shaped, about 0.3 mm long.
According to the USDA, this species is a known allelopath. [USDA-E-flora]
| Allergen |
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The plant is also said to cause contact dermatitis and, with its high production of pollen, can be a major cause of hayfever[269, 274].
| Hydrocyanic Acid |
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Under certain environmental conditions the plant can produce hydrocyanic acid and so is potentially toxic to livestck[274].
| Photosensitizing |
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Bermuda grass is reported to be photosensitizing in animals[269].
Medicinal Uses
Bermudagrass is reported to be alterative, anabolic, antiseptic, aperient, astringent, cyanogenetic, demulcent, depurative, diuretic, emollient, sudorific, and vulnerary[269].
Tie Xian Cao (root)- Beta-sitosterol.50 - Anticancer, depurative, diuretic, emollient.[CRNAH]
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Decoction: A decoction of the root is used as a diuretic in the treatment of dropsy and secondary syphilis[240].
Piles: An infusion of the root is used to stop bleeding from piles[240, 243].
| Juice |
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The juice of the plant is astringent and is applied externally to fresh cuts and wounds[240].
Anthelmintic: When mixed with the powder of a clove (Syzygium aromaticum), it is used as an anthelmintic[272]. Internal Use: Internally, it is used in the treatment o
f chronic diarrhoea and dysentery[240, 243]. It is also useful in the treatment of catarrhal ophthalmia[240, 243]. The juice is also diuretic and is used in the treatment of dropsy and anasarca[240, 243]. The leaf juice has also been used in the treatment of hysteria, epilepsy and insanity[240, 243].
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The plant is a folk remedy for anasarca, calculus, cancer, carbuncles, convulsions, cough, cramps, cystitis, diarrhoea, dropsy, dysentery, epilepsy, headache, haemorrhage, hypertension, hysteria, insanity, kidneys, laxative, measles, rubella, snakebite, sores, stones, tumours, uro-genital disorders, warts, and wounds[269].
Propogation
Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant out into their permanent positions in late spring. There are almost 4,000,000 seeds per kilo[269]. Division in late spring. Very simple, plants can be propagated easily from rooted sideshoots, establishing quickly when planted straight into the soil[269].
Cultivation
Prefers a warm sunny position in a well-drained soil[200]. The plant can grow in very diverse conditions of soil and moisture, withstanding drought well and also tending to eliminate other plants[269]. It spreads quite rapidly, rooting at the nodes, becoming difficult to eradicate and can be a serious weed in cultivated land[269]. Bermudagrass is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation of 9 to 429cm, an annual temperature range of 5.9 to 27.8°C, and a pH in the range of 4.3 to 8.4. Reported from the Hindustani Centre of Diversity, Bermudagrass, or cvs thereof, is reported to tolerate alkali soil conditions, disease, drought, frost, grazing, herbicide, heavy metal, heavy soil, insects, laterite, nematodes, peat, poor soil, salt, sand, atmospheric pollution, ultraviolet, virus, water-logging and weeds[269]. It is unproductive in poor dry soils and is best adapted to relatively fertile, well-drained soils with a pH of 6.0-7.0, in humid areas. Plants withstand long periods of drought, as they produce little growth in dry weather[269]. This species is hardy to about -10°c[200]. Plants vary greatly in habit according to soil and climate, and occur in several natural strains which differ widely in size, colour (bright, yellow-green to dull blue-green), texture of stars and leaves, size of spikes, and grazing value. Most varieties are poor seeders and are propagated by their creeping stem. Bermudagrass can form dense cover in almost pure stands, practically anywhere. Abundant as a weed along roadsides, in lawns, on sandy wastes, along sand dunes, and readily takes possession of any uncultivated area[269].
Groundcover: Plants are sometimes grown as a cover for warm sunny banks and are sometimes used for lawns[200, 269]. They stay green even in hot and dry weather[269]. Plants give complete ground cover in 4-8 weeks when planted 30-45 cm apart[269]. They succeed on most soil types and requires very little mowing on poor soils[269].
Soil Stabilizer: Valuable for soil conservation due to its long runners that root at the nodes[269].
Biomass: Plants are used to produce biomass. Annual productivity ranges from 4 to 52 tonnes per hectare[269].
Synonyms
Capriola dactylon (L.) Kuntze
Cynodon aristiglumis Caro & Sßnchez
Cynodon incompletus auct. non Nees [misapplied]
Panicum dactylon L.
Perennial herb, mat-like, from rhizomes or stolons. Stem: ± branched. Leaf: blade short, flat, narrow, fleshy. Inflorescence: digitate; branches 2–20, spike-like, spikelets sessile, overlapping, in 2 rows along 1 side of axis. Spikelet: bisexual, strongly compressed; glumes ± equal, 1-veined, awn 0; floret 1(2), upper floret vestigial, breaking above glumes; lemma keeled, 3-veined, awn 0; palea = lemma, 2-veined.
8–10 species: tropics, warm temperate Eurasia, Africa. (Greek: dog tooth, from hard scales on rhizomes) [Barkworth 2003 FNANM 25:235–241] Cynodon transvaalensis Burtt Davy [Cynodon transvalensis, orth. var.], Cynodon plectostachyus (K. Schum.) Pilg. occasionally reported, not naturalized.
Local Species;
References