Aristida congesta

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Cladus: Commelinids
Ordo: Poales

Familia: Poaceae
Subfamilia: Aristidoideae
Tribus: Aristideae
Genus: Aristida
Species: Aristida congesta
Name

Aristida congesta Roem. & Schult., Syst. Veg., ed. 15 bis 2: 401 (1817).
Synonyms

Homotypic
Chaetaria congesta (Roem. & Schult.) Nees, Fl. Afr. Austral. Ill.: 189 (1841).
Heterotypic
Aristida alopecuroides Hack., Verh. Bot. Vereins Prov. Brandenburg 30: 144 (1888).
Aristida longicauda Hack., Bol. Soc. Brot. 7: 143 (1888).
Aristida tunetana Coss. in J.A.Battandier & L.C.Trabut, Fl. Algérie, Monocot.: 157 (1895).
Aristida congesta var. pilifera Chiov., Annuario Reale Ist. Bot. Roma 8: 333 (1908 publ. 1907).
Aristida rangei Pilg., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 48: 344 (1912).
Aristida elytrophoroides Chiov., Agric. Colon. 18: 351 (1924).
Aristida congesta var. megalostachya Henrard, Meded. Rijks-Herb. 58A: 126 (1929).
Aristida tunetana var. intermedia Maire, Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Afrique N. 20: 206 (1929).

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Africa
Algeria; Angola; Ascension; Botswana; Cape Provinces; Caprivi Strip; Chad; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Free State; Kenya; KwaZulu-Natal; Lesotho; Madagascar; Mauritania; Morocco; Mozambique; Namibia; Northern Provinces; Saudi Arabia; Sudan; Swaziland; Tanzania; Tunisia; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Roemer, J.J. & Schultes, J.A. 1817. Caroli a Linné equitis Systema Vegetabilium secundum classes ordines genera species. Cum characteribus, differentiis et synonymiis. Editio nova, speciebus inde ab editione XV. detectis aucta et locupletata. Vol. 1. XXVIII+642 pp. Sumtibus J. G. Cottae, Stuttgardtiae [Stuttgart]. BHL Reference page. : 2:401.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2019. Aristida congesta in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2019 Dec 16. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2019. Aristida congesta. Published online. Accessed: Dec 16 2019.
Tropicos.org 2019. Aristida congesta. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 16 Dec 2019.
USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN) [Online Database]. [1]

Vernacular names
Afrikaans: Aapstertsteekgras

Aristida congesta (tassel three-awn, Afrikaans: Aapstertsteekgras) is a species of grass native to all provinces of South Africa as well as Namibia, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, and Mozambique. The SANBI Red List classifies it as "safe."[1]

SANBI mentions two subspecies:

Aristida congesta Roem. & Schult. subsp. congesta
Aristida congesta Roem. & Schult. subsp. barbicollis (Trin. & Rupr.) De Winter[2]

It is a thick perennial tussock that grows 10–75 cm high. The leaves can be flat or folded. The plumes are 3–20 cm long. The spikelets have uneven husks. The upper portion is the widest, at 6.5–10 mm. It can be found on deciduous woodland on rocky slopes and weathered areas.[3]
Grazing

It has little value for grazing except when young:
Header text EIW SWIW LnregWIW
Grazing Response Index[4] 1 1.3 1.04
References

"SANBI Red List entry". SANBI.
"Red List entry". SANBI.
"FAO". UN Food and Agriculture Organization.
"P C V du Toit Objektiewe weidingsindekswaardes van Nama-Karoo plantegroei: grasse en bossies van die Karoo". Grootfontein Agricultural Development Institute.