Datasheet

Enhanced

10 August 2018

Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass)

Author: M. A Duenas-LopezAuthors Info & Affiliations

Publication: CABI Compendium

21631

https://doi.org/10.1079/cabicompendium.21631

Datasheet Types: Pest, Invasive species, Host plant

Abstract

This datasheet on Eragrostis pilosa covers Identity, Overview, Distribution, Dispersal, Hosts/Species Affected, Diagnosis, Biology & Ecology, Environmental Requirements, Natural Enemies, Impacts, Uses, Prevention/Control, Further Information.

Identity

Preferred Scientific Name: Eragrostis pilosa (L.) P. Beauv.
Preferred Common Name: India lovegrass
Other Scientific Names: Catabrosa verticillata (Cav.) P.Beauv.; Eragrostis afghanica Gand.; Eragrostis amurensis Prob.; Eragrostis bagdadensis Boiss.; Eragrostis baguirmiensis A.Chev.; Eragrostis collocarpa K.Schum.; Eragrostis filiformis Link; Eragrostis gracilis Schrad.; Eragrostis gracillima Hack.; Eragrostis imberbis (Franch.) Prob.; Eragrostis indica (J.Koenig ex Rottler) Willd. ex Steud.; Eragrostis jeholensis Honda; Eragrostis linkii (Kunth) Steud.; Eragrostis multispicula Kitag.; Eragrostis petersii Trin.; Eragrostis punctata (L.) Link ex Steud.; Eragrostis tenuiflora Rupr. ex Steud.; Eragrostis verticillata (Cav.) P. Beauv.,; Eragrostis verticillata (Cav.) Roem. & Schult.; Poa bohemica J.C.Mayer ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch; Poa delicatior Steud.; Poa indica J.Koenig ex Rottler; Poa linkii Kunth; Poa pilosa L.; Poa pilosa L.; Poa poiretii Roem. & Schult.; Poa punctata L.f.; Poa senegalensis Desv.; Poa verticillata Cav.
International Common Names: English
hairy love grass
Jersey love-grass
small-tufted lovegrass
soft lovegrass; Spanish
barba de Indio
pasto ilusión
pasto pelillo
sereno; French
eragrostide à manchettes
éragrostide à plusieurs tiges
éragrostide poilue
pâturin poilu; Chinese
hua mei cao; Portuguese
capim-barbicha-de-Alemao
capim-orvelho
capim-peludo
Local Common Names: Brazil
barbicha de alemao
capin atana
capin panasco; Germany
behaartes Liebesgras
Haarliebesgras
vielstängliges Liebesgras; Italy
eragrostide a fusti numerosi
eragrostide pelosa
panicella pelosa; Japan
ooniwahokori; Netherlands
harig liefdegras
straatliefdegras; Norway
slørfriargras; Poland
miłka owłosiona; Saudi Arabia
heelaagoog; Turkey
kıllı yulaf; Venezuela
grama de fidoeos
EPPO code: ERAPI (Eragrostis pilosa)

Pictures

Plant
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); uprooted plant, showing typical habit. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Flowerheads
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); flowerheads are contracted panicles at first, becoming open at maturity (8-24 cm long). Lower branches are whorled, with sparse, rigid, 1-4 mm long hairs in the axils. Spikelets are 1-1.5 mm wide, usually 6-8 flowered, flattened, unawned, with lemmas 1-2 mm long. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Flowerhead
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); flowerhead. Lower branches are whorled, with sparse, rigid, 1-4 mm long hairs in the axils. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); spikelets are often tinged purplish, 1-1.5 mm wide, usually 6-8 flowered, flattened, unawned and with lemmas 1-2 mm long.. Australia. March 2013. — Spikelets
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); spikelets are often tinged purplish, 1-1.5 mm wide, usually 6-8 flowered, flattened, unawned and with lemmas 1-2 mm long. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Ligule
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); ligule, a ciliate rim with hairs to 0.5 mm long. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Node
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); nodes are usually purplish. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Stem base
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); stem bases are usually purplish. Australia. March 2013.
©Harry Rose/Macleay Grass Man/via flickr - CC BY 2.0

Habit
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); habit.
©Luigi Rignanese-2006 - CC BY-NC 3.0

Lower part of plant
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); lower part of plant, showing roots.
©Luigi Rignanese-2006 - CC BY-NC 3.0

Fruits
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); fruits, close-up of caryopses.
©D. Walters & C. Southwick/CPHST/Bugwood.org - CC BY-NC 3.0 US

Intact spikelet
Eragrostis pilosa (India lovegrass); intact spikelet. Photographed in laboratory at CPHST, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA.
©D. Walters & C. Southwick/CPHST/Bugwood.org - CC BY-NC 3.0 US

Summary of Invasiveness

Eragrostis pilosa is an annual grass native to Eurasia and Africa that has become naturalized in many other tropical and temperate regions of the world. It is a common weed in disturbed areas such as roadsides and crop fields. It is invasive in a number of Pacific Islands, the Philippines, Australia, and North America but no further information is available about its impacts or invasiveness in natural or semi-natural habitats in its non-native range.

Taxonomic Tree

Notes on Taxonomy and Nomenclature

Eragrostis Wolf is the largest genus in the subfamily Chloridoideae, with approximately 350 species (Clayton et al., 2018). Members of Eragrostis are generally characterized by paniculate inflorescences, multi-floreted spikelets, glabrous three-nerved lemmas and ciliate ligules. The genus is considered monophyletic but is morphologically and anatomically diverse, and exhibits a wide range of variation in many characteristics (Ingram and Doyle, 2007). Several infraspecific taxa have been described (Scholz, 1988). E. pilosa and E. aethiopica are regarded as putative ancestors of tef (t'ef), a native Ethiopian cereal crop.

Plant Type

Annual

Grass / sedge

Herbaceous

Seed propagated

Vegetatively propagated

Description

The following description is from Clayton et al. (2018):

Eragrostis pilosa is an annual; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 8–70 cm long. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 2–20 cm long; 1–4 mm wide. Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open; elliptic, or ovate; 4–25 cm long. Primary panicle branches whorled at lower nodes. Panicle branches eglandular; bearded in axils. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels eglandular. Spikelets comprising 4–14 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets linear; laterally compressed; 3–7 mm long; 0.7–1.2 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; shedding paleas or retaining paleas (in temperate regions). Glumes deciduous; dissimilar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 0.5–0.7 mm long; 0.5–0.7 length of upper glume; hyaline; without keels; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume ovate; 1 mm long; 0.6–1 length of adjacent fertile lemma; hyaline; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex acute. Fertile florets appressed to rhachilla. Fertile lemma ovate; 1–1.6 mm long; membranous; keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma apex obtuse, or acute. Palea keels scaberulous. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped. Anthers 3; 0.2–0.3 mm long. Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; ellipsoid; laterally compressed; plano-convex; 0.6–1 mm long.

Distribution

Eragrostis pilosa is distributed in tropical and warm temperate regions of the Old World and is introduced in the New World (Clayton et al., 1974; Clayton et al., 2018). In its native range it is found in the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa through to East Asia (Flora of China Editorial Committee, 2018; Flora of Pakistan) and temperate regions of Europe (Walsh, 1994). E. pilosa is mostly found in coastal countries worldwide, but not in cooler northern temperate areas. It is naturalized in North America (USDA-NRCS, 2018), Central, and South America, and in Caribbean regions (Giraldo Cañas et al., 2012). It is introduced in some Pacific islands (PIER, 2018), Australia (Simon and Alfonso, 2011), New Zealand (NZPCN, 2018) and some European countries (Nobis and Nobis, 2009).

In Europe it has been reported as a weed in Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine and Yugoslavia (Holm et al., 1997).

Distribution Map

Distribution Table

History of Introduction and Spread

Eragrostis pilosa has been introduced in America, Oceania and in some European countries. It was first reported in the USA in Michigan in 1924 (Reznicek et al., 2011). In Belgium it was first recorded in 1877 and is now found across the country (Alien plants of Belgium, 2018). It was first recorded in the Netherlands in 1958, and has since spread throughout the country, predominantly in the south (NDFF, 2018). It was introduced to Poland from Ukraine in 2005 and has since spread to other locations (Nobis and Nobis, 2009).

Introductions

Introduced to	Introduced from	Year	Reasons	Introduced by	Established in wild through		References	Notes
Introduced to	Introduced from	Year	Reasons	Introduced by	Natural reproduction	Continuous restocking	References	Notes
Michigan	Europe	1924			Yes	No	Reznicek et al. (2011)
Belgium		1877			Yes	No	Alien plants of Belgium (2018)
Netherlands		1958			Yes	No	NDFF (2018)
Poland	Ukraine	2005			Yes	No	Nobis and Nobis (2009)

Risk of Introduction

Eragrostis pilosa has a moderate to high likelihood of being further introduced unintentionally outside its natural range by seed contamination via traded grain commodities (Alien plants of Belgium, 2018). Recently, in some European countries, it has been introduced by vehicles such as trains or cars (Nobis and Nobis, 2009).

Means of Movement and Dispersal

Natural Dispersal

Eragrostis pilosa spreads by seeds, which can be transported by water, wind and soil. It also spreads with the movement of hay, via machinery, road and rail traffic (Holm et al., 1997; Nobis and Nobis, 2009) and possibly in car tires (NDFF, 2018).

Accidental Introduction

Eragrostis pilosa is likely to be introduced unintentionally via trade as a seed contaminant (Alien plants of Belgium, 2018).

Pathway Causes

Pathway cause	Long distance	Local	References
Disturbance (pathway cause)		Yes	Alien plants of Belgium (2018)
Escape from confinement or garden escape (pathway cause)		Yes	Alien plants of Belgium (2018)
Garden waste disposal (pathway cause)		Yes	Alien plants of Belgium (2018)
Seed trade (pathway cause)	Yes		Alien plants of Belgium (2018)

Pathway Vectors

Pathway vector	Notes	Long distance	Local	References
Debris and waste associated with human activities (pathway vector)			Yes	Alien plants of Belgium (2018)
Machinery and equipment (pathway vector)	Seed		Yes	Holm et al. (1997)
Plants or parts of plants (pathway vector)	Seed	Yes		Alien plants of Belgium (2018)
Land vehicles (pathway vector)	Seed		Yes	NDFF (2018)
Water (pathway vector)	Seed		Yes	Holm et al. (1997)
Wind (pathway vector)	Seed		Yes	Holm et al. (1997)

Hosts/Species Affected

This species is a significant weed in cotton crops (Brazil), in barley and wheat (Korea), in sugarcane (Taiwan), in dryland crops (India), in rice (India, Indonesia and Dominican Republic) and in vineyards (Ukraine) (Srivastava and Saxena, 1967; Holm et al.,1997). It is also considered a crop weed in Pakistan (Ashraf et al., 2012). E. pilosa is a host of the root lesion nematode pathogen in rice crops (Ravichandra, 2013), and promotes the rice pest Leptocorisa varicornis in rice crops (Srivastava and Saxena, 1967).

Host Plants and Other Plants Affected

Host	Family	Host status	References
Gossypium hirsutum (Bourbon cotton)	Malvaceae	Other
Hordeum vulgare (barley)	Poaceae	Other
Oryza sativa (rice)	Poaceae	Main
Saccharum officinarum (sugarcane)	Poaceae	Other
Triticum aestivum (wheat)	Poaceae	Other	Ihsan et al. (2011)

Growth Stages

Vegetative growing stage

Similarities to Other Species/Conditions

Eragrostis pilosa can be distinguished from other Eragrostis species by its lowermost inflorescence branches, which are always verticillate (vs. single), and by its periligular zone, which always bears some hairs (vs. glabrous). The inflorescence branches are long and remain erect (inflorescence long and slender) (Alien plants of Belgium, 2018). Eragrostis pilosa tends to have a more open, spreading panicle than E. pectinacea, with less persistent paleas (Reznicek et al., 2011). For information on distinguishing it from E. albensis, see Nobis and Nobis (2009). For further information on the characteristics that distinguish it from other Eragrostis species, see Walters (2011).

Habitat

This species grows in varied habitats. It grows in both waterlogged areas (India Biodiversity Portal, 2018) and in dry places. It prefers moist pastures and open, disturbed ground; it also frequently grows in roadsides and waste areas (Holm et al., 1997), and grows around rice paddies (Srivastava and Saxena, 1967). In its native range (Africa), it is found in floodplain grassland, on river sand banks and in alluvium woodland (Flora Zambesiaca, 2018). It is also commonly found as a weed in croplands and on fallow land (Clayton et al., 1974).

It is a garden weed in Bhutan (Bhutan Biodiversity Portal, 2018). In Australia, it is found in irrigated crops, urban areas, gardens and nurseries (Walsh, 1994; Simon and Alfonso, 2011). In the Pacific Islands, it is found in disturbed sites, on cultivated land, and along roadsides (Smith, 1979; Wagner et al., 1999). In Europe, it is considered a ruderal species, found almost exclusively in urban habitats (street, sidewalk, gutter, car parks), and along railways and roadsides (Nobis and Nobis, 2009; NDFF, 2018.)

Habitat List

Category	Sub category	Habitat	Presence	Status
Terrestrial	Terrestrial – Managed	Cultivated / agricultural land	Secondary/tolerated habitat	Harmful (pest or invasive)
Terrestrial	Terrestrial – Managed	Disturbed areas	Secondary/tolerated habitat	Natural
Terrestrial	Terrestrial – Managed	Rail / roadsides	Secondary/tolerated habitat	Natural
Terrestrial	Terrestrial – Managed	Urban / peri-urban areas	Secondary/tolerated habitat	Natural
Terrestrial	Terrestrial ‑ Natural / Semi-natural	Natural grasslands	Principal habitat	Natural
Terrestrial	Terrestrial ‑ Natural / Semi-natural	Wetlands	Principal habitat	Natural

Biology and Ecology

Genetics

The majority of Eragrostis species show a range of ploidy levels (Ingram and Doyle, 2007). Thje chromosome number reported for E. pilosa varies from 2n= 20, 36, 40, 60 (Giraldo Cañas et al., 2012; Flora of China Editorial Committee, 2018).

Reproductive Biology

Reproduction and propagation is mainly by seeds. It can create a long-lasting soil seed bank (Li et al., 2006).

Physiology and Phenology

Flowering and fruiting is from May to August in India (India Biodiversity Portal, 2018), from July to October in Pakistan (Flora of Pakistan, 2018), and from August to November in China (Flora of China Editorial Committee, 2018). In Australia, it flowers and fruits all year round (Simon and Alfonso, 2011), and in the Netherlands from July to the autumn (NDFF, 2018). E. pilosa uses the C4 pathway in photosynthesis (Ingram and Doyle, 2007).

Environmental Requirements

Eragrostis pilosa is found at elevations of 300 to 2000 m in Africa (Clayton et al., 1974; Flora Zambesiaca, 2018), 1,00-1200 m. in Bhutan (Bhutan Biodiversity Portal, 2018), from sea level to 1700m in South America (Giraldo Cañas et al., 2012), and from sea level to about 800 m in Fiji (Smith, 1979). In Australia, it is found in sandy alluvium, loams, and lateritic soils (Simon and Alfonso, 2011); in South America, in wet sandy soils (Giraldo Cañas et al., 2012), in black basaltic soil and clayey soils in Africa (Clayton et al., 1974; Flora Zambesiaca, 2018) and mostly in sandy ground in the Netherlands (NDFF, 2018)

Climate

Climate type	Description	Preferred or tolerated
Af - Tropical rainforest climate	> 60mm precipitation per month	Preferred
Am - Tropical monsoon climate	Tropical monsoon climate ( < 60mm precipitation driest month but > (100 - [total annual precipitation(mm}/25]))	Preferred
As - Tropical savanna climate with dry summer	< 60mm precipitation driest month (in summer) and < (100 - [total annual precipitation{mm}/25])	Preferred
Aw - Tropical wet and dry savanna climate	< 60mm precipitation driest month (in winter) and < (100 - [total annual precipitation{mm}/25])	Preferred
BS - Steppe climate	> 430mm and < 860mm annual precipitation	Tolerated
BW - Desert climate	< 430mm annual precipitation	Tolerated
C - Temperate/Mesothermal climate	Average temp. of coldest month > 0°C and < 18°C, mean warmest month > 10°C	Preferred
Cs - Warm temperate climate with dry summer	Warm average temp. > 10°C, Cold average temp. > 0°C, dry summers	Preferred
Cw - Warm temperate climate with dry winter	Warm temperate climate with dry winter (Warm average temp. > 10°C, Cold average temp. > 0°C, dry winters)	Preferred
Cf - Warm temperate climate, wet all year	Warm average temp. > 10°C, Cold average temp. > 0°C, wet all year	Preferred
Ds - Continental climate with dry summer	Continental climate with dry summer (Warm average temp. > 10°C, coldest month < 0°C, dry summers)	Preferred
Dw - Continental climate with dry winter	Continental climate with dry winter (Warm average temp. > 10°C, coldest month < 0°C, dry winters)	Preferred
Df - Continental climate, wet all year	Continental climate, wet all year (Warm average temp. > 10°C, coldest month < 0°C, wet all year)	Preferred

Latitude/Altitude Ranges

Latitude North (°N)	Latitude South (°S)	Altitude lower (m)	Altitude upper (m)
75	55

Rainfall Regime

Summer

Winter

Bimodal

Uniform

Soil Tolerances

Soil texture > light

Soil texture > medium

Soil drainage > seasonally waterlogged

List of Pests

Notes on Natural Enemies

Eragrostis pilosa can be infested with the obligate root-hemiparasitic plant Striga hermonthica (Watling and Press, 1998).

Natural enemies

Natural enemy	Type	Life stages	Specificity	References	Biological control in	Biological control on
Striga hermonthica (witchweed)	Parasite	Roots	not specific

Impact Summary

Category	Impact
Cultural/amenity	Negative
Economic/livelihood	Positive and negative
Human health	Positive

Impact

According to Holm et al. (1997), this weed is found in more than 30 crops in over 50 countries. It is most important in Brazil (cotton), Indonesia (rice), Korea (barley and wheat), Dominican Republic (rice), Taiwan (sugarcane), India (dryland crops) and the Ukraine (vineyards).

Impact: Environmental

Eragrostis pilosa is cited as invasive in a number of Pacific Islands, the Philippines (PIER, 2018), Australia (Simon and Alfonso, 2011) and North America (PIER, 2018; USDA-NRCS, 2018) but no further information is available about its impacts or invasiveness in natural or semi-natural habitats in its non-native range.

Impact: Social

Eragrostis pilosa is a grassy weed in gardens and nurseries (Walsh, 1994; Simon and Alfonso, 2011).

Risk and Impact Factors

Invasiveness

Proved invasive outside its native range

Has a broad native range

Abundant in its native range

Highly adaptable to different environments

Is a habitat generalist

Tolerates, or benefits from, cultivation, browsing pressure, mutilation, fire etc

Pioneering in disturbed areas

Tolerant of shade

Highly mobile locally

Benefits from human association (i.e. it is a human commensal)

Fast growing

Has high reproductive potential

Has propagules that can remain viable for more than one year

Reproduces asexually

Impact outcomes

Negatively impacts agriculture

Reduced amenity values

Likelihood of entry/control

Highly likely to be transported internationally accidentally

Difficult to identify/detect as a commodity contaminant

Uses

Eragrostis pilosa is used as forage grass and fodder for animals (Flora of China Editorial Committee, 2018; Flora of Pakistan, 2018). Amongst other wild African grasses, E. pilosa is harvested in East Africa for its edible seed (Kunkel, 1984; USA, National Research Council, 1996). It is generally seen as a famine food, but is used regularly in some areas (Useful Tropical Plants, 2018). The seed contains around 16% protein (Burkill, 2000).

Uses List

Animal feed, fodder, forage > Fodder/animal feed

Genetic importance > Progenitor of

Medicinal, pharmaceutical > Traditional/folklore

Human food and beverage > Cereal

Animal feed, fodder, forage > Forage

Human food and beverage > Emergency (famine) food

Prevention and Control

Due to the variable regulations around (de)registration of pesticides, your national list of registered pesticides or relevant authority should be consulted to determine which products are legally allowed for use in your country when considering chemical control. Pesticides should always be used in a lawful manner, consistent with the product's label.

Mechanical control

Tillage, digging or pulling by hand before seed production are 95% effective as means of control Eragrostis spp (DiTomaso et al., 2013).

Chemical Control

Herbicides such as Clethodim, Fluazifop, Glyphosate, Imazapyr and Sethoxydim can control E. pilosa effectively (DiTomaso et al., 2013).

Links to Websites

Name	URL	Comment
GISD/IASPMR: Invasive Alien Species Pathway Management Resource and DAISIE European Invasive Alien Species Gateway	https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.m93f6	Data source for updated system data added to species habitat list.
Global register of Introduced and Invasive species (GRIIS)	http://griis.org/	Data source for updated system data added to species habitat list.

Bibliography

Holm LG, Doll J, Holm E, Pancho JV, Herberger JP, 1997. World Weeds: Natural Histories and Distribution. New York, USA: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

References

Alien plants of Belgium, 2018. Manual of the alien plants of Belgium. In: Manual of the alien plants of Belgium.Belgium: National Botanic Garden of Belgium. http://alienplantsbelgium.be/

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