Digitaria sanguinalis
| Digitaria sanguinalis | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 7 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 2' |
| Blooms: | Late Summer-Early Fall |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Digitaria sanguinalis (common name: crab grass)
Propagation: Seed - best sown in situ in the spring[1]. Only just cover the seed.
Cultivation: Prefers a sandy soil[2]. Requires a warm sheltered position[1].
This species is occasionally cultivated, especially in Poland, for its edible seed.
Range: Cosmopolitan. A rare casual in Britain[3].
Habitat: Arable ground and waste places in Britain[3].
Edibility: Seed - ground up and used as a flour[4][5][6]. It has excellent keeping qualities[7] and makes a fine white flour that can be used for semolina[7][8].
Medicinal: A decoction of the plant is used in the treatment of gonorrhoea[9]. A folk remedy for cataracts and debility, it is also said to be emetic[10][9].
Usage: A fibre obtained from the plant is used in making paper[7].
Pollinators: Wind
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: There is a report that the leaves might be cyanogenic[9].
Also Known As: Panicum sanguinale.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Grounds, Roger. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm, 1989.
- ↑ Tutin, Tom et al.. Flora Europaea. Cambridge University Press, 1964.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Schery. Robert. Plants for Man. Prentice Hall, 1972.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Komarov, Vladimir. Flora of the USSR. Gantner Verlag, 1968.
- ↑ Sowerby, John. The Useful Plants of Great Britain. 1862.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.
- ↑ Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.