Brachiaria brizantha

Description

A grass. It is stout and rigid and grows 1.3 m high. It forms tussocks. The leaves are long and tapering. They have thick rough edges. There are up to 15 flower heads per stalk. The seed heads have seeds on one side. These heads are 8 cm long. The spikelets are 4-6 mm long.

Edible Uses

Seeds are sun dried, winnowed, and ground into flour then cooked into a thick porridge. It is used as a famine food.

Traditional Uses

Seeds are sun dried, winnowed, ground into flour then cooked into a thick porridge.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Known Hazards

The grass can cause a photosensitization syndrome in animals marked by skin lesions, facial edema, and ruminal stasis. The plant contains saponins which accumulate in the animal liver as sapogenin glucuronide crystals, resulting in liver damage. Neurological symptoms such as ataxia can also occur. This is sometimes a fatal condition. The poisoning is more likely to occur in fields that have not been recently grazed.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It grows in hot, arid places. It grows in areas with an annual rainfall above 50 mm. It can grow in semi-desert and on terminate mounds. It grows between 50-2,400 m above sea level. It can tolerate shade. It can grow in arid places.

Where It Grows

Africa, Angola, Asia, Australia, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central Africa, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Ecuador, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guyana, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Malaysia, Middle East, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nigeria, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Rwanda, SE Asia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Trinidad & Tobago, Uganda, Venezuela, West Africa, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Cultivation

Brachiaria brizantha is found wild mainly in the wetter tropics. It is well adapted to the humid and sub-humid tropics where it can withstand dry seasons of up to 5 months, it can also succeed in cultivation in warm temperate areas. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 25 - 35°c, but can tolerate 15 - 38°c. It is tolerant of some frost, though exact details are not known. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 750 - 2,500mm, but tolerates 500 - 4,000mm. Prefers a sunny position, but is tolerant of light to moderate shade. Grows well on a range of soils including sandy and acid soils, though does not tolerate poorly drained soils. The plant is fairly resistant to drought. Prefers a pH in the range 5 - 6, tolerating 4.5 - 7. Some varieties of this plant, including the cultivar 'Marandu', are resistant to the insect spittlebug. Most forms of the plant do not tolerate fire well.

Propagation

Seed - Division of culms or root pieces.

Other Uses

The plant makes a very good ground cover, and is used to protect the soil in tree crop plantations. It is used in India and Australia to protect the soil from erosion.

Other Information

It is a famine food.

Notes

There are about 100 Brachiaria species.

Nutrition

Synonyms

Also Known As

Kifuta, Nhacancine, Zinyaruzoka

References (19)

• Bircher, A. G. & Bircher, W. H., 2000, Encyclopedia of Fruit Trees and Edible Flowering Plants in Egypt and the Subtropics. AUC Press. p 63
• Famine foods
• Fowler, D. G., 2007, Zambian Plants: Their Vernacular Names and Uses. Kew. p 69
• Fox, F. W. & Young, M. E. N., 1982, Food from the Veld. Delta Books. p 302
• Heywood, V.H., Brummitt, R.K., Culham, A., and Seberg, O., 2007, Flowering Plant Families of the World. Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. p 393

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