''Digitaria sanguinalis'' is a species of
grass
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...
known by several
common name
In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...
s, including hairy crabgrass, hairy finger-grass,
large crabgrass, crab finger grass, purple crabgrass.
It is one of the better-known species of the genus ''
Digitaria'', and one that is known nearly worldwide as a common weed. It is used as animal fodder, and the seeds are edible and have been used as a grain in Germany and especially Poland, where it is sometimes cultivated. This has earned it the name Polish millet.
Description
It is an annual grass with an
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are forme ...
of up to nine very long, very thin, radiating branches atop its stems. Each branch is lined with pairs of very tiny
spikelets
A spikelet, in botany, describes the typical arrangement of the flowers of grasses, sedges and some other Monocots.
Each spikelet has one or more florets. The spikelets are further grouped into panicles or spikes. The part of the spikelet that ...
. The inflorescences may be reddish or purplish.
Image:Digitaria sanguinalis.jpg
Image:Harig_vingergras_detail_plant_(Digitaria_sanguinalis).jpg
Image:Harig vingergras ligula (Digitaria sanguinalis).jpg
Image:Digitaria sanguinalis inflorescence.jpg
Uses
During the European
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, ''Digitaria sanguinalis'' was cultivated by
Slavic peoples in
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
, where it was cooked in soups and porridges.
The plant was brought to the United States by immigrants to serve as hand-foraged grain. The grass is also highly nutritious, especially before the plant exhausts itself producing seed. It is frequently sown in fields to provide graze for animals, or clipped and bundled as
hay. Compared to other grasses, it has a relatively high protein percentage. Farmers will sometimes till patches in their pastures in the late spring, with the intent of encouraging crabgrass seed.
For human consumption, crabgrass necessarily must be harvested by hand, because it produces grain throughout summer, rather than simultaneously. Machine harvesting would require monthly passes, and even then much of the seed would go to waste. Crabgrass produces an exceptionally high amount of grain, it smothers other weeds, it acts as its own mulch, and it can survive both heat and drought. Its adaptability makes it a candidate for environmental small-farming.
Control
Its usefulness to nineteenth-century homesteaders has made its seed widespread, and today is generally considered an unattractive nuisance. Crabgrass takes advantage of low fertility and drought, since this tends to weaken other grasses and it tends to invade
manicured turf. It is difficult to kill, as it will regenerate, and chemicals will likely harm surrounding grasses. As an
annual
Annual may refer to:
*Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year
** Yearbook
** Literary annual
*Annual plant
*Annual report
*Annual giving
*Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco
*Annuals (band), ...
, it can be controlled by
preemergent herbicides. The most efficient means of control is to pull patches, and keep the rest of the lawn watered and mowed at a height of two to three inches.
''Digitaria sanguinalis'' - Cabi
/ref>
See also
*'' Digitaria compacta'', raishan, used as a grain crop in northeast India
*''Digitaria exilis
''Digitaria exilis'', referred to as findi or fundi in areas of Africa, such as The Gambia, with English common names white fonio, fonio millet, and hungry rice or acha rice, is a grass species. It is the most important of a diverse group of wild ...
'', white fonio, used as a crop in West Africa
*'' Digitaria iburua'', black fonio, used as a crop in West Africa
References
External links
Jepson Manual TreatmentGrass Manual Treatment
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q158994
sanguinalis
Grasses of Europe
Cereals
Flora of Malta