Common Name: Black Spear Grass

General Information

Black spear grass is a clump-forming, perennial grass producing a clump of leaves up to 30cm long and flowering stems 30 - 100cm tall.
The plant has often been grown as a pasture grass, and is also utilized as a material for thatching and weaving[, ]. It has been grown to provide erosion control, but has escaped from cultivation and become a noxious weed.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Originating in the Tropics of Asia or Africa, it has spread to most other tropical areas.

Habitat

Not known

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.50 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated

Cultivation Details

Succeeds in tropical and subtropical regions, being naturally found in savannah grasslands in areas of moderate rainfall where it is seasonally warm and wet, then cooler and dry[]. It is found mainly in areas with an annual rainfall in the range of 600 - 1,100mm, tolerating lower rainfall when growing on deep sands of drainage lines; and tolerating higher rainfall when growing in well-drained sites[].
Grows on a wide range of well to moderately free-draining soil types[]. Established plants are relatively drought-tolerant, but are intolerant of prolonged waterlogging or high salinity[].
The plant has escaped from cultivation and become a noxious weed in some areas.
It appears not to have been a climax dominant, but it has become so, particularly in Australia, India and Africa, through habitat disturbance such as heavy grazing and burning[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

None known

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant has been grown in Hawaii and southwestern N. America to provide erosion control and revegetation of degraded areas[].

Other Uses

A fibre obtained from the plant is used for making coarse mats and for thatching[]. The culms are 30 - 100cm long and up to 3mm in diameter at the base.

Propagation

Seed -

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