Eragrostis tenella, also known as Japanese lovegrass, is a tufted bunchgrass that is annual or perennial.
It is of variable size and not more than 50cm high. It is a common weed in rice fields in various countries such as India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand
Scientific Classification
- Kingdom: Plantae
- Phylum: Anthophyta
- Class: Monocotyledoneae
- Subclass: Magnoliidae
- Order: Cyperales
- Family: Poaceae
- Genus: Eragrostis
- Species: Eragrostis tenella
- Common Names: Japanese lovegrass, Feather lovegrass
Nativity and Distribution
Its native range is Tropical and Subtropical Old World, while its continental distribution is;
- Africa
- Temperate Asia
- Tropical Asia
- Australasia
- The Pacific
- North America
- South America
E. Tenella is one of the Eragrostis species that was found to occur in transplanting rice cultures in Thailand and India. It is a common weed in upland rice fields in Indonesia, India, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
In the Philippines, it has been reported as a common weed in lowland and upland conditions.
Physical Characteristics
- Leaves: Leaf blades are 3-8 cm long and 2 mm wide. They are glabrous with inconspicuous ligules.
- Flowers: Small yellowish-green spikelet with a single floret. The panicle is open and delicate and is 6cm long or could be longer. Spikelets are 2mm long.
- Stems: Straggling stems up to 30-50cm high.
- Roots: The root system is fasciculate.
- Seeds: They are small dark brown grains
- Fruit: An indehiscent grain (Caryopsis, the pericarp is sometimes free and occasionally fleshy)
The leaf’s sheaths are splintered and glabrous. The blades are split and narrow towards the tip. The nervation is parallel to the midnerve that is raised underneath.
Rough and green on both sides are the margins. It has a ligule with a ring of five soft hairs.
The inflorescence is variable in size and can be up to about 15 cm long, usually with many branches 2 to 4 cm long or shorter.
The spikelets are small, usually about 0.2 to 0.25 cm long, with 3 to 6 florets that are pale green and tinted violet. The anthers are purple.
Life Cycle/Reproduction/Dispersal
- Life Cycle: Annual or Perennial
- Seeds: Propagation is by seed or division.
- Climate: Grows aggressively in different climate zones
- Dispersal: Dispersed by wind, water, soil, stock feed, and contaminated machinery.
E. Tenella is a prolific seed producer, with one plant producing about 140000 seeds. It is very competitive, has a rapid growth rate, and produces bristling tillers and leaves quickly.
The plant can grow in both upland and lowland conditions. E. tenella is found in waste places, old walls, roadsides, lawns, gardens, and beach dikes.
It flourishes in permeable and impermeable soils, mostly in compacted and stony areas.
Experiments show that germination is strongly stimulated by light, and seeding emergence was the highest for the seeds sown on the soil surface. Therefore, E. Tenella is likely to be a troublesome weed in zero-till systems.
Control
Although the weed may be important in different ecosystems, very little is known about its seed biology.
Detailed information on weed seed biology should be available for effective and sustainable weed management strategies.
Cultural
Crop residue can be used as mulches whereby they suppress seedling emergence and the growth of several weed species.
It can also be controlled by cultivation, which is best done following dry conditions as it allows for the desiccation of uprooted plants.
Chemical
Eragrostis species are examples of weeds that are increasing in direct-seeded rice systems. Apparently, these species are less affected by bispyribac-sodium, a common postemergence herbicide used in Asia.
Control can be done by pre- and post-emergence applications. Post-emergence application of 2 4-D at 500g. I/ha.
Pre-emergence application of butachlor at 1.5kg a.I/ha, Pretilachlor at 1.0kg/ha, Anilophos at 400g/ha.
Lead Editor for Insight Weeds.