Panicum turgidum

Cultivation Details

A plant of the arid tropics and subtropics where it is found at elevations up to 3,200 metres^[1]. The plant grows best in areas where the mean annual temperature is within the range 25 - 35°c, but can tolerate 8 - 40°c^[1]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 200 - 400mm, tolerating 100 - 600mm^[1]. Requires a sunny position and a very well-drained soil^[1]. Prefers a light to medium soil and is tolerant of poor soils and saline soils^{[2, 1]}. The plant is extremely drought resistant^[3]. Prefers a pH in the range 6.5 - 7, but tolerates 6 - 8^[1]. In dry areas the dormant buds sprout rapidly after the onset of the rainy season and the plants stay green over a very extended period, with flowering occurring towards the end of the rainy season and during the early part of the dry season^[2]. The seeds are difficult to harvest in quantity because they mature at different times over an extended period, shatter easily and are often eaten by birds^[2]. The plant photosynthesize by a more efficient method than most plants. Called the 'C4 carbon-fixation pathway', this process is particularly efficient at high temperatures, in bright sunlight and under dry conditions^[2]. A collection of 42 accessions of Panicum turgidum is held at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. High grain-yielding types are particularly found in the Middle East^[2].