We have recently published ‘Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions’: i.e. tropical and sub-tropical regions. We rely on regular donations to keep our free database going and help fund development of this and another book we are planning on food forest plants for Mediterranean climates. Please give what you can to keep PFAF properly funded. More >>>

Follow Us:

 

Pennisetum setaceum - (Forssk.) Chiov

Common Name Fountain grass
Family Poaceae
USDA hardiness 8-11
Known Hazards None known
Habitats A densely tufted perennial up to 130 cm tall, growing in rocky hillsides and dry stony plains in grasslands, and occurs at altitudes of 600 to 3,000m. Native to open, scrubby habitats in East Africa, tropical Africa, Middle East and SW Asia.
Range Native range of this species is tropical Africa, it is found in Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Jordan, Afghanistan and Sicily. It has also naturalized in North America, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Australasia, Namibia, South Africa, Micronesia, Fiji and New Caledonia.
Edibility Rating    (3 of 5)
Other Uses    (2 of 5)
Weed Potential Yes
Medicinal Rating    (0 of 5)
Care (info)
Half Hardy Well drained soil Moist Soil Semi-shade Full sun
Pennisetum setaceum Fountain grass


tato grasso wikimedia.org
Pennisetum setaceum Fountain grass
Forest & Kim Starr starrenvironmental.com

 

Translate this page:

Summary


Physical Characteristics

 icon of manicon of flower
Pennisetum setaceum is a PERENNIAL growing to 1.5 m (5ft) by 1.5 m (5ft) at a fast rate.
See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 9.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.

UK Hardiness Map US Hardiness Map

Synonyms

Cenchrus setaceus (Forssk.) Morrone. Pennisetum cupreum Hitchc. [Invalid]. Pennisetum erythraeum Chiov. Pennisetum macrostachyum Fresen. [Illegitimate]. Pennisetum macrostachyon Fresen. [Spelling variant]. Pennisetum numidicum Paris [Invalid]. Pennisetum orientale var. altissimum Chiov. Pennisetum orientale subsp. parisii Trab. Pennisetum orientale var. parisii (Trab.) Leeke. Pennisetum parisii (Trab.) Trab. Pennisetum phalaroides Schult. [Illegitimate]. Pennisetum ruppellii Steud. Pennisetum ruppellii var. depauperatum Schweinf. Pennisetum scoparium Chiov. Pennisetum setaceum var. parisii (Trab.) Maire. Pennisetum spectabile Fig. & De Not. Pennisetum tiberiadis Boiss. Phalaris setacea Forssk.

Plant Habitats

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Seed
Edible Uses:

Carbon Farming Solutions - Staple Crop: balanced carb (The term staple crop typically refers to a food that is eaten routinely and accounts for a dominant part of people's diets in a particular region of the world) [1-1]. A minor or regional crop in production with low or unreported yields [1-1]. A number of Pennisetum species have edible seeds - no detailed information could be found for this species.

References   More on Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.


None Known

References   More on Medicinal Uses

The Bookshop: Edible Plant Books

Our Latest books on Perennial Plants For Food Forests and Permaculture Gardens in paperback or digital formats.

Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions: 250+ Plants For Tropical Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.
Edible Tropical Plants

Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions: 250+ Plants For Tropical Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.

More
Plants for Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.
Edible Temperate Plants

Plants for Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.

More
PFAF have eight books available in paperback and digital media.
More Books

PFAF have eight books available in paperback and digital formats. Browse the shop for more information.

Shop Now

Other Uses

This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds. Fountain grass is well adapted to fire and fires may contribute to fountain grass spread. Fountain grass is of little grazing value due to its coarse rough leaves. A popular ornamental.

Special Uses

Carbon Farming  Food Forest

References   More on Other Uses

Cultivation details

Management: Standard  Regional Crop  Staple Crop: Balanced carb

Climate: warm temperate to subtropical, Mediterranean. Humidity: semi-arid. Light: Sun to Partial Shade. Soil pH requirements: 6.1 (mildly acidic) to 7.8 (mildly alkaline). It grows in most soils, even poorly drained soils preferring exposed, dry habitats, particularly rocky areas but can also grow in sandy soils such as coastal grasslands. It is drought-tolerant and fast growing. Becomes facultativlely inactive with extended drought, freezing, or near-freezing temperatures. Carbon Farming Solutions - Cultivation: regional crop. Management: standard (Describes the non-destructive management systems that are used in cultivation) [1-1].

Carbon Farming

  • Management: Standard  Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.
  • Regional Crop  These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.
  • Staple Crop: Balanced carb  (0-15 percent protein, 0-15 percent oil, with at least one over 5 percent). The carbohydrates are from either starch or sugar. Annuals include maize, wheat, rice, and potato. Perennials include chestnuts, carob, perennial fruits, nuts, cereals, pseudocereals, woody pods, and acorns.

References   Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information

Temperature Converter

Type a value in the Celsius field to convert the value to Fahrenheit:

Fahrenheit:

image

The PFAF Bookshop

Plants For A Future have a number of books available in paperback and digital form. Book titles include Edible Plants, Edible Perennials, Edible Trees,Edible Shrubs, Woodland Gardening, and Temperate Food Forest Plants. Our new book is Food Forest Plants For Hotter Conditions (Tropical and Sub-Tropical).

Shop Now

Plant Propagation

Plants can be grown from cuttings. It can also be grown by seeds or division of the clump. This is a very easy grass to propagate.

Other Names

If available other names are mentioned here

Fountain grass, African fountain grass, crimson fountaingrass,

Native Range

TEMPERATE ASIA: Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt (Sinai), Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria EUROPE: Italy (Sicilia) AFRICA: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Weed Potential

Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section. Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it’s worth checking.

Fountain grass or African fountain grass is a highly invasive tufted grass. Plants are used as ornamentals and once escaped, this grass can form dense stands that exclude all other plants. It has been used for soil stabilisation and is a weed of pastures and alongside railway lines and roads. It interferes with natural fire regimes and competes with native species for limited resources.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status : Status: Least Concern ver 3.1

Related Plants
Latin NameCommon NameHabitHeightHardinessGrowthSoilShadeMoistureEdibleMedicinalOther
Pennisetum alopecuroidesChinese Fountain Grass, Fountain Grass, Swamp Foxtail Grass, Chinese Fountain GrassPerennial1.5 5-9 FLMNDM103
Pennisetum cereale Perennial0.0 -  LMNDM10 
Pennisetum glaucumPearl MilletAnnual3.0 -  LMNDM21 
Pennisetum purpureumNapier grass. Elephant grassPerennial4.0 8-11 FLMHSNM224

Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.

 

Expert comment

Author

(Forssk.) Chiov

Botanical References

Links / References

For a list of references used on this page please go here

Readers comment

Add a comment

If you have important information about this plant that may help other users please add a comment or link below. Only comments or links that are felt to be directly relevant to a plant will be included. If you think a comment/link or information contained on this page is inaccurate or misleading we would welcome your feedback at [email protected]. If you have questions about a plant please use the Forum on this website as we do not have the resources to answer questions ourselves.

* Please note: the comments by website users are not necessarily those held by PFAF and may give misleading or inaccurate information.

To leave a comment please Register or login here All comments need to be approved so will not appear immediately.

Subject : Pennisetum setaceum  
© 2010, Plants For A Future. Plants For A Future is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales. Charity No. 1057719, Company No. 3204567.