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Echinochloa crus-galli

Common name:	Barnyard Millet	Family:	Gramineae
Author:	(L.)P.Beauv.	Botanical references:	50, 200, 236
Synonyms:	Panicum crus-galli (L.)
Known Hazards:	This grass has been reported to accumulate levels of nitrate in its tissues high enough to be toxic to farm animals[269]. This problem is most likely to occur when plants are fed with inorganic fertilizers[K].
Range:	Native habitat is unknown but it is widespread in warmer regions occasionally introduced in Britain.
Habitat:	Ditches roadsides and waste places in S. Europe[50]. Wet places and rich soils in India[240].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	E. crus-galli ssp. edulis[B,P] E. crus-galli subsp. spiralis[G] E. crus-galli var. crus-galli[P] E. crus-galli var. edulis[G] E. crus-galli var. frumentacea[B,G,P] E. crus-galli var. mitis[G] E. crusgalli[ENERGY,E,] E. frumentacea[B,E,G,HORTIPLEX,L,P] E. pungens var. coarctata[P] E. spiralis[G] Oplismenus frumentaceus[G] Panicum crus-galli var. mite[G] Panicum frumentaceum[B,G,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Attorlothe [E], Barnyard Grass [FEIS,L], Barnyardgrass [P], Billion-Dollar Grass [L], Cockspur Grass [L], Darojan [E], Dnan [E], Dukhain [E], Han Pai [E], Hanenpoot [D], Japanese Millet [P], Japanese-millet [B], Japanesse Barnyard Millet [L], Large Barnyard Grass [B], Large Barnyardgrass [P], Lung Chao Su [E], Pai [E], Shui Pai [E], Wu Ho [E], Ya Chao Pai [E],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Cyperales. Renamed to Poaceae -- Grass family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Britain(Wales) China India India(Santal) Iraq Kurdistan
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: USA Invasive.

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 1.2m by 0.15m . It is hardy to zone 6. It is in flower from July to September, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline soil. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Coffee Leaves Seed.

Seed - cooked[35, 55, 105, 171]. Used as a millet, it can be cooked whole or be ground into a flour before use[183, 257]. It has a good flavour[85] and can be used in porridges, macaroni, dumplings etc[183]. The seed is rather small[159], though fairly easy to harvest. It has a somewhat bitter flavour[178].
Young shoots, stem tips and the heart of the culm - raw or cooked[144, 177]. A nutritional analysis is available[218].
The roasted seed is a coffee substitute[177].

Composition

Leaves (Dry weight): In grammes per 100g weight of food:
Water: 0 Protein: 7.4 Fat: 2.9 Carbohydrate: 81.1 Fibre: 31.3 Ash: 8.6
Source: [218]

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Styptic Tonic.

Reported to be preventative and tonic, barnyard grass is a folk remedy for treating carbuncles, haemorrhages, sores, spleen trouble, cancer and wounds[269].
The shoots and/or the roots are applied as a styptic to wounds[218, 240].
The plant is a tonic, acting on the spleen[218, 240].

Other Uses

Soil reclamation.

The plant is sometimes used, especially in Egypt, for the reclamation of saline and alkaline areas[269].

Cultivation details

An easily grown plant, it is adapted to nearly all types of wet places, and is often a common weed in paddy fields, roadsides, cultivated areas, and fallow fields[269]. It succeeds on a variety of wet sites such as ditches, low areas in fertile croplands and wet wastes, often growing in water[269]. It succeeds in cool regions, but is better adapted to areas where the average annual temperature is 14-16° C[269]. Tolerant of most soil types, including saline conditions, plants are not restricted by soil pH[269]. Prefers a rich moist soil[85] but succeeds in ordinary garden soil[1]. The sub-species E. crus-galli zelayensis (HBK)Hitchc. is often found growing wild in alkaline soils[236]. The plant is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation in the range of 31 to 250cm, an annual temperature range of 5.7 to 27.8° C and a pH in the range of 4.8 to 8.2[269].
Barnyard millet is sometimes cultivated for its edible seed in India[171]. It has a relatively long growing season and does not always ripen its seed in Britain, though it should do better in the eastern half of the country[K].
The plant is considered to be a very serious weed of many cultivated crops[269].

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer.
A sowing in situ in late spring might also succeed but is unlikely to ripen a crop of seed if the summer is cool and wet.

Cultivars

'': No entries have been made for this species as yet.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[FAO] Data (Description, Habitat, Location and Use) from the FAO's Grassland Index.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Echinochloa crus-galli var. crus-galli (a possible synonym).

[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Echinochloa crusgalli (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[HEC] Use, Folk Medicine, etc. from Handbook of Energy Crops by James Duke

References for Echinochloa frumentacea (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[FAO] Data (Description, Habitat, Location and Use) from the FAO's Grassland Index.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[35] The Herb Society Herbal Review. Vol.11. 4. The Herb Society 1986 ISBN 0264-9853

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[55] Harris. B. C. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health 1973
Interesting reading.

[85] Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9
A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[144] Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana 1976 ISBN 0-00-634436-4
A very good pocket guide.

[159] McPherson. A. and S. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press 1977 ISBN 0-253-28925-4
A nice pocket guide to this region of America.

[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[178] Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre
A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[236] Hitchcock. A. S. Manual of the Grasses of the United States Dover Publications. New York. 1971 ISBN 0-486-22717-0
A nice and comprehensive flora, though a bit dated. Good line drawings of each plant, plus a brief idea of the habitat and a few notes on plant uses. Not for the casual reader.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

[269] Duke. J. Handbook of Energy Crops - 1983
Published only on the Internet, excellent information on a wide range of plants.

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