# Kikuyu Grass

*Cenchrus clandestinus*

Its specific epithet 'clandestinus' refers to its hidden flowers, which remain tucked away inside the leaf sheaths, revealing only delicate, thread-like stamens to the wind.

- **Taxonomy:** Plantae › Tracheophyta › Liliopsida › Poales › Poaceae › Cenchrus
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** increasing
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Subtropical grasslands, pastures, lawns, roadsides, and disturbed coastal areas.
- **Diet:** Autotrophic (photosynthetic, utilizing sunlight, carbon dioxide, water, and soil nutrients).
- **Range:** Kenya, Ethiopia, Australia, South Africa, United States, New Zealand
- **Size:** Mat-forming turf up to 30 cm tall, with creeping stolons extending over 3 meters.
- **Lifespan:** Perennial (indefinite clonal lifespan through continuous vegetative propagation).
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Herbicides, severe winter frost, extreme prolonged drought, and heavy shading by dense forest canopies.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless. Kikuyu grass is safe to touch and walk on, making it a popular lawn turf. However, its airborne pollen during flowering seasons can trigger hay fever and respiratory allergies in sensitive individuals.

## About

The tropical grass species Cenchrus clandestinus (previously Pennisetum clandestinum ) is known by several common names, most often Kikuyu grass . It is native to the highland regions of East Africa that is home to the Kikuyu people. Because of its rapid growth and aggressive nature, it is categorised as a noxious weed in some regions. However, it is also a popular garden lawn species in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the southern region of California in...

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/7b8608fe-1055-4aa3-aa29-a97506067ae6
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/60298
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cenchrus clandestinus
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/176237297/medium.jpg (Harry Rose, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.