Common Name:

General Information

Hymenachne amplexicaulis is a perennial, evergreen grass with robust, decumbent stems 200 - 350cm long that root and form new growth at the lower nodes. Plants can spread freely to form large clumps.
The plant is sometimes harvsted from the wild for local use as a wick. It has potential as a nutrient sink and sediment trap in situations polluted by habitation and cultivation.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

S. America - All countries other than Chile; C. America - Panama to Mexico; Caribbean.

Habitat

A semi-aquatic plant in open swamps and ditches from sea-level up to 1,200 metres[].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Perennial
Height	2.50 m
Pollinators	Wind
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of moister areas of the tropics and subtropics, growing in areas of high rainfall at elevations up to 1,200 metres[].
Requires a sunny position, being intolerant of shade[]. The plant is adapted to acid soils in peat swamps having a pH in the range 4 - 4.8[]. It can tolerate water up to 1 metre deep, but is better adapted to seasonal immersion than to permanent water[].
Sometimes the plant becomes a troublesome weed, especially in Asia and Australia, where it can be found in wetlands, flood plains, irrigation systems, water storage facilities, irrigated rice and sugar cane crops[]. It spreads by means of by seed and broken stem fragments. Each flower head can produce over 4000 viable seeds - these can survive in water and are spread during annual flooding events and in mud attached to the fur or hooves of animals. Waterbirds may also be responsible for spreading seed. Broken stem fragments can be carried to new locations by floodwaters, and then take root in moist soil.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

None known

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant has been proposed as a nutrient sink and sediment trap in situations polluted by habitation and cultivation[].

Other Uses

The pith of the culms is used for making lamp wicks[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown in situ as soon as it is ripe. Seed viability declines fairly quickly under ambient storage conditions in the tropics (20 - 30°c), from an initial 98% to 10% over a period of 16 months[].

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