International Journal of Horticulture, 2017, Vol.7, No. 11, 82-94
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Importance and uses: Carpet grass is best adapted to Subtropical/Tropical regions and thrives in poor soils, good
for parks, roadsides, and Golf Course roughs. Carpet grass is poor wear and cold weather tolerant and fairly shade
tolerant.
3.6 Centipede grass (
Eremochloa ophiuroides
)
Description: It is native to Southern China and commonly known as ‘Chinese Lawn Grass’. This is a stoloniferous
creeping perennial with compressed sheaths. Leaves are approximately 1.5 to 3.0 cm in length, 2 to 4 mm in breadth,
and having a distinctly flat white midvein. Leaves are smooth except in the collar regions. Leaves are auricleless,
and bears a short membranous hairy ligule. The inflorescence is a single spikelike raceme, 37.5cm to 12.5 cm long.
The racemes are flattened, purplish in colour, having spikelets arranged in two rows.
Varieties: ‘Oklawn’, ‘AU Centennial’, ‘Common’, ‘Hammock’, ‘Tifblair’, ‘Raleigh’, ‘Tennessee Hardy’,
‘Covington’, ‘Santee’.
Importance and uses: It is a medium textured, slow growing, aggressive grass and produces a dense, attractive and
weed-free turf. Centipede grass is more shade tolerant than bermudagrass but less shade tolerant than St. Augustine
and zoysiagrass. Due to surface runner habit, it can easily be controlled around borders of flower beds and walks.
This is the best grass with little care and management under full sunshine or partial shade. It typically requires little
fertilizer or lime and less mowing than other turfgrasses do.
3.7 Kikuyu grass (
Pennisetum clandestinum
)
Description: It is native to East Africa. Kikuyu is a
30 to 70 cm tall, having the
much-branched stolons and forming a turf with regular
Shoots are sterile, equipped with short stems
and long leaves. Fertile shoots are low-growing than sterile shoots having shorter leaves. Leaf sheathes are pale
yellow-green, usually with fairly dense, fine tubercular-based hairs, sometimes smooth and hairy
Leaf
blade is
30 cm in length and 7 mm in breadth, tightly folded at young stage, but becomes flat when
mature,smooth with sparse to dense tubercular-based hairs and finely serrated margins.
is modified
to a cluster of 2-4 very shortly stalked spikelets, almost enclosed in the uppermost leaf sheath. Spikelets are 10-20
mm long, narrow, bearing 2 florets, the lower one sterile, the upper one
or functionally male or female.
Caryopses are
dark brown, about 2.5 mm long and 1.5 mm wide, pointed with persistent shor
Varieties: ‘Kabete’, ‘Whittet’, ‘Breakwell’, ‘Hosaka’ (Hosaka, 1958).
Importance and uses: This lawn grass is very common in
and Southern
California, America because it is cheap and drought resistant. In addition, it can be useful in a pasture for heavy
grazing of livestock and serves as a food source for many birds. Kikuyu is used for very high traffic and usage
areas in the community due to its fast repair capabilities.
3.8 Salt grass
(Distichlis spicata
)
D
escription: Salt grass is native to America. Saltgrass is a rhizomatous and stoloniferous perennial, 35cm to 90cm
tall. It is a dioecious species bearing male and female reproductive parts on separate plants. The inflorescence is
yellowish in colour, turning straw brown as it dries.
Varieties: ‘LK517f saltgrass’
Importance and uses: Under favourable soil and moisture conditions, saltgrass is ideal for pastures irrigated with
saline water. It can produce total dry matter of 9081 kg/ha having total protein production of 1300 kg/ha. Saltgrass
is nicely relished by both cattle and horses and it has a good forage because it remains green in drought periods. It
is most commonly used as livestock feed in lean period.
Saltgrass is a foodplant for the larva of Wandering Skipper (
Panoquina panoquinoides errans
) butterfly. Besides,
it is also an important food in the diet of Endangered and Threatened species like waterfowl and the Florida salt
