Eragrostis unioloides (Retz.) Nees ex Steud., Poaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Threat only at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

English: Chinese love grass, Chinese lovegrass

Habit:  grass

Description: 

Genus: "Annuals or perennials; panicle open or contracted, bearing few- to many-flowered spikelets, the florets generally imbricate, the rachilla disarticulating above the glumes and between the florets, the lemmas deciduous, acuminate or acute, keeled or rounded on the back, 3-nerved, the nerves usually prominent; paleae sometimes persistent, 2-nerved, the keels sometimes ciliate, the glumes sometimes unequal, acuminate or acute, 1-nerved" (Smith, 1979; pp. 301-302).

Species:  "Culms erect, 25-60 cm high; leaf blades flat, narrow, 7.5-15 cm long, 1.5-3 mm broad; panicle 7-15 cm long, the racemes purplish, ascending, 2-7 cm long, branched; spikelets ovate, compressed, truncate at base, obtuse at apex, 10-25-flowered, usually purplish in color, the paleae and lemmas usually falling together" (Smith, 1979; pp. 301-302).

Description from World Grass Species.

Habitat/ecology:  In Fiji, occurs "with some frequency on Viti Levu...from sea level to about 200 m in fields, pastures, and along roadsides.  It is a moderately common weed locally and probably is to be expected on other islands"  (Smith, 1979; pp. 301-302).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Southern Asia, but now widespread (Smith, 1979; pp. 301-302).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced invasive	Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 301-303) Vouchers cited: Greenwood 815A, DA 8639, DA 6084, DA 1187, DA 8453, DA 7526, DA 8709, DA 7713, Smith 7093, DA 7592
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Herbst, Derral R./Wagner, Warren L. (1999) (pp. 26-27) Vouchers cited: Kawasaki s.n. (BISH 118925), Wagner & Stemmermann 4634 (BISH), Stemmermann 7128 (BISH), Wagner et al. 5969 (BISH)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands		Hafliger, Ernst/Scholz, Hildemar (1980) (p. 78)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)

Additional information:  Additional online information about Eragrostis unioloides is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Taxonomic information about Eragrostis unioloides may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Hafliger, Ernst/Scholz, Hildemar. 1980. Grass weeds, vol. 2. CIBA-GEIGY Ltd., Basle, Switzerland. 137 pp. + plates.

Herbst, Derral R./Wagner, Warren L. 1999. Contributions to the flora of Hawai‘i. VII. In: Evenhuis, Neal L. and Eldredge, Lucius G., eds. Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey for 1998. Part 1: Articles. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers. 58:12-36.

Smith, Albert C. 1979. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 1. 494 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2007. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2005. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).