''Imperata'' is a small but widespread genus of tropical and subtropical grasses, commonly known as satintails. Satintail grass species are perennial rhizomatous herbs with solid, erect stems and silky inflorescences. The best known species is '' Imperata cylindrica'', which is recognized as a devastating

noxious weed A noxious weed, harmful weed or injurious weed is a weed that has been designated by an agricultural or other governing authority as a plant that is injurious to agricultural or horticultural crops, natural habitats or ecosystems, or humans or liv ...

in many places and cultivated as an ornamental plant in others. The genus is named after

Ferrante Imperato Ferrante Imperato (1525? – 1615?), an apothecary of Naples, published ''Dell'Historia Naturale'' (Naples 1599) and illustrated it with his own cabinet of curiosities displayed at Palazzo Gravina in Naples; the engraving became the first pict ...

, a Renaissance apothecary who lived in Naples in the late-16th and early-17th centuries. His collection included a

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

.Atlas of Living Australia
/ref>

Species

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

accepted the following species:Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> * '' Imperata brasiliensis'' - South + Central America, West Indies, southern Mexico * '' Imperata brevifolia'' - southwestern US ( CA AZ NV UT NM TX) * '' Imperata cheesemanii'' - Kermadec Islands (part of New Zealand) * '' Imperata condensata'' - Argentina, Chile * '' Imperata conferta'' - plumegrass, kunay grass - Southeast Asia, Papuasia, Micronesia * '' Imperata contracta'' - guayanilla - South + Central America, West Indies, southern Mexico * '' Imperata cylindrica'' - bladygrass, cogongrass, speargrass, silver-spike - Africa, southern Europe, southwestern Asia; introduced in central and eastern Asia, North America, various islands * '' Imperata flavida'' -

Hainan Province Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

in China * '' Imperata minutiflora'' - Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina * '' Imperata parodii'' - southern Chile * ''

Imperata tenuis ''Imperata'' is a small but widespread genus of tropical and subtropical grasses, commonly known as satintails. Satintail grass species are perennial rhizomatous herbs with solid, erect stems and silky inflorescences. The best known species is ...

'' - Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, Corrientes Province of Argentina

Formerly Included

Various species have been relocated to other genera, such as '' Cinna, Lagurus,

Miscanthus ''Miscanthus'', or silvergrass, is a genus of African, Eurasian, and Pacific Island plants in the grass family, Poaceae. ; Species * ''Miscanthus changii'' Y.N.Lee – Korea * ''Miscanthus depauperatus'' Merr. – the Philippines * ''Miscanthus ...

Saccharum,'' and ''

Tripidium ''Tripidium'' is a genus of flowering plant in the family Poaceae, native to Spain, Morocco, Korea and New Guinea. The genus name was first published by Hildemar Wolfgang Scholz in 2006 as a replacement for the illegitimate name ''Ripidium''. ...

'':Imperata
/ref> * ''Imperata eulalioides -

Miscanthus sacchariflorus ''Miscanthus sacchariflorus'', the Amur silvergrass, is a grass native to temperate Northeast Asia Northeast Asia or Northeastern Asia is a geographical subregion of Asia; its northeastern landmass and islands are bounded by the Pacific Ocea ...

'' * ''Imperata exaltata -

Tripidium arundinaceum ''Tripidium arundinaceum'', synonym ''Saccharum arundinaceum'', commonly known as hardy sugar cane, is a grass native to tropical and subtropical Asia from India to Korea and New Guinea. In the Tamil language it is known as நாணல் − ...

'' * ''Imperata klaga - Saccharum spontaneum'' * ''Imperata ovata -

Lagurus ovatus ''Lagurus'' is a genus of Old World plants in the grass family, native to the Mediterranean Basin and nearby regions, from Madeira and the Canary Islands to Crimea and Saudi Arabia. It is also naturalized in Australia, New Zealand, the Azores, Ir ...

'' * ''Imperata saccharifera -

Cinna arundinacea Cinna may refer to: * Cornelia gens#Cornelii Cinnae, Cornelii Cinnae, an ancient Roman family :* Lucius Cornelius Cinna, Roman consul four consecutive times in the 80s BC and at the time of his death the father-in-law of Julius Caesar :* Gnaeus Cor ...

'' * ''Imperata sacchariflora -

'' * ''Imperata sara - Tripidium bengalense'' (syn. ''Saccharum bengalense'') * ''Imperata spontanea - Saccharum spontaneum'' * ''Imperata tinctoria -

Miscanthus tinctorius ''Miscanthus'', or silvergrass, is a genus of African, Eurasian, and Pacific Island plants in the grass family, Poaceae. ; Species * ''Miscanthus changii'' Y.N.Lee – Korea * ''Miscanthus depauperatus'' Merr. – the Philippines * ''Miscanthu ...

References

Panicoideae Poaceae genera {{Panicoideae-stub