Stipagrostis damarensis
(Mez) De Winter
iNaturalist· cc0
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iNaturalist· cc0
no rights reserved
Description
A herb. It is an erect grass that forms loose tufts. It has rhizomes or underground stems and keeps growing from year to year. It grows up to 1.2 m high.
Edible Uses
The seeds are eaten in porridge as a cereal grain.
Traditional Uses
The seeds are eaten in porridge.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Distribution
It is a subtropical plant. It grows in hot arid areas. It grows in areas with an annual rainfall less than 250 mm. It grows between 400-1,200 m above sea level. It can grow in deep sandy and stony soils and deserts. It can grow in arid places.
Where It Grows
Africa, Namibia, South Africa, Southern Africa,
Cultivation
The seeds are collected from ant heaps where they are collected by harvester ants.
Synonyms
Also Known As
Turumangombe
References (4)
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 4th June 2011]
- Ruiters-Welcome, A. K., 2019, Food plants of southern Africa. Ph.D. thesis. Univ. of Johannesburg p 90
- Welcome, A. K. & Van Wyk, B.-E., 2019, An inventory and analysis of the food plants of southern Africa. South African Journal of Botany 122 (2019) 136–179
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
