Eragrostis curvula
Eragrostis curvula
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
Easily grown in most well-drained soils so long as the plant is in a hot, dry, sunny position[1]. Weeping love grass is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation of 31 to 163cm, an annual temperature range of 5.9 to 26.2°C and a pH in the range of 5.0 to 8.2[2]. It is adapted to semi-arid and desert areas and sandy soils, growing well on low fertility soils[2]. A very drought-resistant plant, but it lacks hardiness for more northern areas[2]. It grows well on a wide range of well-drained soils, especially sandy loams; moderately frost-resistant in southern areas[2]. Plants are hardy to about -5°c and succeed outdoors in the milder areas of Britain[1]. The roots contain pyrocatechol, suggesting an explanation for the plants resistance to nematodes[2]. The species and its varieties are apomictic (producing seed without fertilization) although sexual plants have occasionally been found[2].
Propagation
Seed - sow early spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out after the last expected frosts. The seed can also be sown in situ in mid to late spring, though in a cool summer it may fail to ripen many seeds[3]. Division in spring. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Eragrostis+curvula>
Pollinators
Apomictic, wind
References
- [1]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
- [2]Handbook of Energy Crops — Duke. J. · - · 1983 · https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/duke_energy/dukeindex.html · ISBN - ↩︎Published only on the Internet, excellent information on a wide range of both temperate and tropical plants.
- [3]Ornamental Grasses. — Grounds. R. · Christopher Helm · 1989 · ISBN 0-7470-1219-9 ↩︎Cultivation details of many of the grasses and bamboos. Well illustrated.