Eragrostis minor Host
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Description
Eragrostis minor is an annual or short-lived perennial grass, usually 10–60 cm tall, with a tufted growth habit. Culms are slender, erect or ascending, smooth, and arise from a fibrous root system. The plant often forms dense patches in disturbed habitats. Leaves are linear, narrow, and flat, generally 3–15 cm long and 1–5 mm wide. Leaf blades are soft, green, and sometimes slightly rough along the margins. Leaf sheaths are smooth, and the ligule is membranous with a fringe of hairs. The inflorescence is a loose, open panicle, usually 5–20 cm long, with numerous delicate branches. Spikelets are small, narrow, and compressed, containing several tiny florets arranged in two rows. The glumes are short, and lemmas are usually purple-green. Flowers are bisexual, reduced, and wind-pollinated. The fruit is a small caryopsis, enclosed within persistent floral bracts.
Diagnostic Characters
Distribution
Native range: Native to Mediterranean region, Europe, Western Asia.
In Pakistan: Widely distributed in Pakistan, India, Middle East, Europe. In Pakistan commonly found plains, Agricultural areas, Urban disturbed habitats.
Phenology
Ethnobotany & Uses
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Where it grows on campus
Taxonomic Notes
Eragrostis belongs to tribe Chloridoideae, characterized by Open panicles, Many-flowered spikelets, Adaptation to dry environments. Eragrostis minor can be distinguished from related species by Smaller size, Compact delicate panicle, Short spikelets.