Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana)

Local name: Rhodes grass

Rhodes grass is an excellent perennial grass and is native of South Africa. It grows luxuriantly and covers  large  areas and  thus  helps  in  checking soil erosion. This grass is reported to useful in reclaiming saline tracts.

The seeds of Rhodes grass are light and difficult to sow evenly. It may be mixed with about double its weight of saw dust and sown through a grain seed drill.  It should not  be sown  deeply. Broadcasting into  a prepared surface and rolling  in May gives best results. It gives yields about 450-600 quintals of fodder in 5-6 cuttings per year. The grass also spreads by means of running branches which root and produce tuft at every node.

Nutritive value

The grass is leafy and palatable and fairly nutritious. It is also used as soiling (grazing) crop. In combination with lucerne, it helps in improvement of soil fertility. It contains 8-10% crude protein and 32% crude fibre at fresh late vegetative stage. The total digestible nutrient is 55.0%.