''Setaria palmifolia'' 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 the common names palmgrass, highland pitpit, hailans pitpit, short pitpit, broadleaved bristlegrass, and knotroot. In

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

it is called ''pasto de palma'' and in Samoan ''vao 'ofe 'ofe''.''Setaria palmifolia''.
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER). USDA Forest Service. It is native to

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...

and

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

Asia. It is known elsewhere as an introduced, and often invasive, species, including in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

, many

Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

, and the Americas.

Description

This species is a perennial grass with stems growing up to two''Setaria palmifolia''.
Flora of China. or three
GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. meters long from a knotty

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow ...

. The stems can be up to a centimeter thick. The leaf sheaths are sparsely to totally hairy. The leaf blades are linear, oval, or lance-shaped and up to 60 to 80 centimeters long by 7 or 8 centimeters wide. They have a pleated texture and are hairless or with some rough hairs. The

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

is loose, open and spreading, reaching up to 80 centimeters long. The spikelet is a few millimeters long but is often accompanied by a bristle which can be 1.5 centimeters long.

Uses

The grass is cultivated as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

for its palm-like pleated leaves. Some

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

s have striped leaves and 'Rubra' has purple midribs.A Floridata Plant Profile: ''Setaria palmifolia''.
FloriData. It is grown as a

vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the edible flower, flowers, ...

crop in

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

, where that is known as Highland Pitpit. The stem of the grass is eaten after cooking.Rose, C. J. (1980)
Optimum replanting stage for two varieties of pit-pit (''Setaria palmifolia'') in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea.
''Papua New Guinea Agricultural Journal'' 31(1-4), 23-29. The grain can be eaten as a

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

substitute.''Setaria palmifolia''.
Grass Manual. Flora of North America. A folk belief in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...

holds that the number of latitudinal creases on the leaf predicts the number of typhoons that will hit the area in the coming or current typhoon season. It is known locally as typhoon grass.

Ecology

The grass has been introduced to many areas, often as an ornamental. It is widespread in the Pacific Islands. It has become an invasive plant on

Lord Howe Island Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland Po ...

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island (, ; Norfuk: ''Norf'k Ailen'') is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together wit ...

Rapa Nui Easter Island ( rap, Rapa Nui; es, Isla de Pascua) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is most famous for its nearly ...

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consis ...

, and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

, and in

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. It is also invasive in New Zealand and

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. The grass is robust and spreads via rhizome and seed banks, forming monotypic stands. It is a tall plant with wide leaves that shade out other vegetation. The rampant feral pigs of Hawaii facilitate its spread there by uprooting the surrounding plants while feeding on its thick stems. It is also spread by seed-eating birds.''Setaria palmifolia''.
Pest Plants of Hawaiian Native Ecosystems. Department of Botany, University of Hawaii at Manoa. This species is host to the

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately fr ...

'' Cercospora setariae'' and '' Phacellium paspali''.Kirschner, R., et al. (2004)
Some cercosporoid hyphomycetes from Taiwan, including a new species of ''Stenella'' and new reports of ''Distocercospora pachyderma'' and ''Phacellium paspali''.
''Fungal Diversity'' 17, 57-68.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q11116561 palmifolia Grasses of Asia Flora of tropical Asia Garden plants of Asia Introduced plants of Oceania Introduced plants of South America