Paspalum
Paspalum is a genus of plants in the grass family.
The group is widespread across much of Asia, Africa, Australia, and the Americas. Commonly known as paspalum, bahiagrasses, crowngrasses or dallis grasses, many of the species are tall perennial New World grasses. They are warm-season C4 grasses and are most diverse in subtropical and tropical regions.
Paspalum scrobiculatum is a millet locally grown as food grain. Some species, such as bahiagrass and P. nicorae, are grown for pasturage, especially with the perennial forage peanut as a companion crop. Bahiagrass has also some significance as a honey plant.
Water finger-grass resembles bermudagrass, but has a higher salinity tolerance and can consume greywater. It is not infrequently used for arena and golf course turf in warmer coastal regions, such as Baja California, Florida, Peru, Texas and Venezuela. Dedicated paspalum cultivars such as 'Aloha Seashore' or 'Platinum TE' have been produced for such uses.
Paspalums are also food for caterpillars of lepidopterans such as the pasture day moth, and those of the dark palm dart which feed on P. urvillei. Granivorous birds often eat paspalum seeds; the chestnut-breasted munia readily feeds on the seeds of P. longifolium, for example.
The ergot Claviceps paspali is a sac fungus that grows on Paspalum, producing ergot alkaloids and the tremorgen paspalitrem; it causes "paspalum staggers" poisoning in cattle.
Tussock paspalum is considered a weed in Australia.Selected species
- Paspalum azuayense
- Paspalum arundinaceum
- Paspalum bakeri
- Paspalum batianoffii
- Paspalum blodgettii
- Paspalum boscianum
- Paspalum caespitosum
- Paspalum ceresia
- Paspalum clavuliferum
- Paspalum conjugatum P.J.Bergius - carabao grass, hilo grass
- Paspalum convexum
- Paspalum decumbens
- Paspalum densum
- Paspalum dilatatum - dallis grass
- Paspalum dispar
- Paspalum distichum
- Paspalum fasciculatum
- Paspalum fimbriatum
- Paspalum floridanum
- Paspalum fluitans
- Paspalum geminatum
- Paspalum longifolium
- Paspalum laeve Michx. - smooth paspalum
- Paspalum laxum
- Paspalum longifolium
- Paspalum longum
- Paspalum macrophyllum
- Paspalum mandiocanum
- Paspalum maritimum
- Paspalum millegrana
- Paspalum minus
- Paspalum molle
- Paspalum nicorae
- Paspalum notatum - bahiagrass, Pensacola bahiagrass
- Paspalum orbiculare G.Forst.
- Paspalum orbiculatum Poir.
- Paspalum paniculatum L.
- Paspalum parviflorum
- Paspalum paucispicatum
- Paspalum peckii
- Paspalum pleostachyum
- Paspalum plicatulum - brownseed paspalum
- Paspalum pulchellum
- Paspalum pubiflorum
- Paspalum quadrifarium - tussock paspalum
- Paspalum repens
- Paspalum rugulosum
- Paspalum rupestre
- Paspalum schesslii
- Paspalum scrobiculatum - koda millet, kodo millet, kodra millet, varuka, varuku
- Paspalum secans
- Paspalum setaceum - slender paspalum
- Paspalum soboliferum
- Paspalum urvillei
- Paspalum vaginatum Sw. - water finger-grass
- Paspalum virgatum
- Paspalum wullschlaegelii
Formerly placed here
- Axonopus compressus, as P. compressum, P. platycaule, P. platycaulon
- Axonopus fissifolius, as P. fissifolium
- Digitaria exilis, as P. exile
