Hyparrhenia hirta

Hyparrhenia hirta is a species of grass known by the common names common thatching grass and Coolatai grass. It is native to much of Africa and Eurasia, and it is known on other continents as an introduced species. In eastern Australia it is a tenacious noxious weed.[1][2] In South Africa, where it is native, it is very common and one of the most widely used thatching grasses.[3][4] It is also used for grazing livestock and weaving mats and baskets.[3]

Hyparrhenia hirta
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Panicoideae
Genus: Hyparrhenia
Species:
H. hirta
Binomial name
Hyparrhenia hirta

This is a perennial grass forming clumps 30 centimetres to one metre tall with tough, dense bases sprouting from rhizomes. The inflorescence atop the wiry stem is a panicle of hairy spikelets with bent awns up to 3.5 centimetres long. The grass can grow in a variety of habitat types, in dry conditions, heavy, rocky, eroded soils, and disturbed areas.

References
  1. New South Wales Flora
  2. Chejara, V.K., et al. (2008). Factors affecting germination of Coolatai grass (Hyparrhenia hirta). Weed Science 56:4 543–48.
  3. PlantZAfrica.com
  4. Bussmann, R. W., et al. (2006). Plant use of the Maasai of Sekenani Valley, Maasai Mara, Kenya. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed 2 22.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hyparrhenia hirta.
  • Jepson Manual Treatment
  • USDA Plants Profile
  • Grass Manual Treatment
  • "Hyparrhenia hirta". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture.


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