Andropogon gayanus
Kunth
Poaceae
Andropogon aethiopicus Rupr. ex Steud.
Andropogon appendiculatus polycladus Hack.
Andropogon bisquamulatus Hochst.
Andropogon cordofanus Hochst.
Andropogon dewevrei De Wild.
Andropogon guineensis Schumach.
Andropogon helophilus K.Schum.
Andropogon hylophilus Engl.
Andropogon infrasulcatus Reznik
Andropogon reconditus Steud.
Andropogon ringoetii De Wild.
Andropogon squamulatus Hochst.
Andropogon tomentellus Steud.
Andropogon tridentatus Hochst.
Cymbachne guineensis (Schumach.) Roberty
Sorghum gayanum (Kunth) Kuntze
Common Name:
General Information
Andropogon gayanus is a clump-forming, perennial grass with with leaves up to 1 metre long and culms from 150 - 250cm tall and around 6mm in diameter. It can form a clump around 100cm in diameter[
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
].
Best known as a tropical grazing grass, the plant is also used as a source of material for thatching and weaving, as well as sometimes being planted for erosion control and soil restoration.
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
Range
Tropical Africa - widespread in semi-arid and seasonal rainfall areas, from the Sahel to Namibia, Botswana and Mozambique.
Habitat
Open woodland and savannah[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
Properties
Weed Potential | Yes |
Other Uses Rating | ![*](other.png) ![*](other.png) ![*](other.png) |
Habit | Evergreen Perennial |
Height | 2.00 m |
Cultivation Status | Cultivated, Wild |
Cultivation Details
A plant of the tropics and warm subtropics, where it can be found at elevations below 2,000 metres, though mostly below 1,000 metres. It prefers a mean annual rainfall within the range 750 - 1,260mm, but can tolerate 400 - 1,400mm[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
]. It can tolerate up to 2,500mm[
310- Title
- Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://proseanet.org/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. It grows best in areas with seasonal rainfall and a dry season of 3 - 6 months[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
]. The plant is sensitive to lower temperatures; the leaves are killed by frost and growth is restricted where the mean minimum temperature of the coldest month is below 4.4°c[
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
]. Optimal flowering is at 25°c[
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
].
Grows best in full sun[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
]. Succeeds on a wide range of soils, including those of low fertility, from sands to black cracking clays, but prefers sandy clays of medium to high fertility[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
]. Succeeds in infertile, acid soils, tolerating a pH range from 4 - 7.5[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
,
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
]. Established plants are drought tolerant and some forms can also tolerate seasonal inundation of the soil[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
,
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
].
Grown in many areas for pasture, the plant has escaped from cultivation and invaded native areas. It is a vigorous, robust grass which can form dense stands, excluding native species. In the Northern Territory, Australia, it has invaded riparian vegetation (creek banks and flood-plain fringes), degraded areas, roadsides, pastures and Eucalyptus savannah, in areas where annual rainfall exceeds 600 mm[
]. It has also become naturalized in Brazil[
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
]. A highly productive grass that increases fuel loads, cures later than the native annual grasses and produces intense, late dry season fires which seriously damage native woody species[
].
The plant has three types of roots - most are fibrous roots close to the surface that probably produce the vigorous early growth; thick cord roots which store starch and anchor the tussock; and vertical roots that can extract water at depth during the dry season[
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
].
Plants are tolerant of grass fires[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
A short-day plant with a critical day length for flowering between 12 and 14 hours[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
Edible Uses
None known
Medicinal
None known
Agroforestry Uses:
The plant has been used for reclaiming badly overgrazed and eroded land[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
]. Ten metre wide strips of the grass have been planted in fields of millet to reduce wind erosion occurring at the start of the wet season. The strips captured more than 2,000 tonnes of sand per hectare within 3 years[
415- Title
- Tropical Forages
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/index.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Mainly focussed on forage plants, the site gives a lot of information on the plant, with a good botanical description, details of cultivation, plant uses and a good selection of photographs.
].
When used in a rotation, especially in impoverished land, the plant has been found to build soil fertility[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
It can be planted along the banks of streams etc to control erosion[
269- Title
- Handbook of Energy Crops
- Publication
-
- Author
- Duke. J.
- Publisher
- -
- Year
- 1983
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Published only on the Internet, excellent information on a wide range of both temperate and tropical plants.
].
Other Uses
The stems are used for weaving coarse grass mats and for thatching[
310- Title
- Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://proseanet.org/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
Propagation
Seed - sow in situ at a depth of 10 - 25mm[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
Division of root clumps[
375- Title
- Grassland Species - Profiles
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Gbase/Default.htm
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Terse information on over 650 species of plants that grow in grassland, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants as well as grasses. Gives a brief description of the plant, its range and habitat and some of its uses.
].
If you have any useful information about this plant, please leave a comment. Comments have to be approved before they are shown here.