Illinois Natural History Survey - University of Illinois

Eleusine indica
Yard grass
Taxonomy

Synonyms:

Subspecific taxa:

Classification:

  • Magnoliophyta

Other taxonomic & nomenclature sources: USDA Plants;  ITIS;  The Plant List;  IPNI

Images

   
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Species Distribution
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More about map & occurrence records

County Map Legend
Absent:
Not known from county
Medium confidence:
Medium or unknown confidence;
often old records or unverifiable observations
Medium-high confidence:
Often observations by expert botanists
High confidence:
Often vouchered herbarium records
Planted / introduced:
Native species introduced outside historic range,
or only in planted locations within county (e.g., restorations)
Historic / extirpated:
Only historic records for the species; likely extirpated
(Note that this category is not yet functional)

North American distribution maps for this species: FLNA;  USDA Plants;  BONAP;  BISON

Collections, Observations & Flowering by Month [?]

J
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F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
0
A
0
S
0
O
0
N
0
D
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Collections & Observations by Decade [?]

Species Status

Status/Listing: No Information

Notes:

Origin: Europe

Species Description

General: Monocot, annual

Roots: adventitious, fibrous

Shoots: alternate leaf arrangment; simple leaf type; entire leaf margin; Parallel leaf venation; awl-shaped leaf shape

Inflorescence: spike

Flowers: perfect; 3 merous; complete; hypogynous ovary position

Fruit: grain

Physiology: autotrophic; C4 C02 fixation

Reproduction: sexual

Ecology & Natural History

Habitat: Species is distributed on waste ground; is troublesome in lawns. It is also found in gardens, roadsides, railroads. It is a weed of "compacted soil" and more common in urban than in rural areas. Occasionally it is found on flood plains and shores.

ILPIN Notes: Stephens, H.A. 1980. Poisonous Plants of the Central United States. Regent Press of Kansas. Lawrence, KA. 165 pp. Species has digitate inflorescence, 1-sided; resembles species of Digitaria, but the spikes are much thicker. The spikelets are more than 1-flowered, and the whole plant aspect is coarser. Only this species is found in Illinois. Abnormal forms are sometimes found in which some or all of the spikelets have been changed into leafy or vegetative shoots. Species is used as flour for bread or soup in times of scarcity by Arab folk and nomadic peoples in Africa.

Functional Relationships:

  • Pollinators:
  • Dispersal:
  • Mycorrhizae: endomycorrhizal
  • N2 fixation:

Human Relationships:

  • Edibility [?] :
  • Showy Flowers:

Wildlife and Livestock Information:

  • Food Value:
  • Cover Value:

Coefficient of Conservatism (C-value) [?] :

  • Entire State:
  • Chicago Area:

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