Pennisetum

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

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

Familia: Poaceae
Subfamilia: Panicoideae
Tribus: Paniceae
Genus: Pennisetum
This genus is now accepted as a synonym of Cenchrus (Chemisquy et al., 2010), but his page has been retained as historical reference, although the link on the main Poaceae page will be deleted in due course.
Species: P. adoense – P. advena – P. alapecuroides – P. albicauda – P. alopecuroides – P. alopecuros – P. americanum – P. amethystinum – P. amoenum – P. ancylochaete – P. angolense – P. angustifolium – P. annuum – P. antillarum – P. araneosum – P. aristidoides – P. arnhemicum – P. articulare – P. arvense – P. asperifolium – P. asperum – P. atrichum – P. aureum – P. bambusiforme – P. baojiense – P. barbatum – P. barteri – P. basedowii – P. beckeroides – P. benthami – P. blepharideum – P. borbonicum – P. brachystachyum – P. breve – P. breviflorum – P. caffrum – P. calyculatum – P. caninum – P. carneum – P. catabasis – P. cauda-ratti – P. cenchroides – P. centrasiaticum – P. cereale – P. chevalieri – P. chilense – P. chinense – P. chudeaui – P. ciliare – P. ciliares – P. ciliatum – P. cinereum – P. clandestinum – P. cognatum – P. complanatum – P. compressum – P. cornucopiae – P. corrugatum – P. crinitum – P. crus-galli – P. cupreum – P. cylindricum – P. cynosuroides – P. dalzielii – P. darfuricum – P. dasistachyum – P. dasystachyum – P. davyi – P. densiflorum – P. depauperatum – P. dichotomum – P. dilloni – P. dioicum – P. dispiculatum – P. distachyum – P. distylum – P. divisum – P. domingense – P. dowsonii – P. durum – P. echinurus – P. elatum – P. elegans – P. elymoides – P. erubescens – P. erythraeum – P. exaltatum – P. exiguum – P. exile – P. fallax – P. fasciculatum – P. felicianum – P. flaccidum – P. flavescens – P. flavicomum – P. flavisetum – P. flexile – P. flexispica – P. foermerianum – P. franchetianum – P. frutescens – P. gabonense – P. gambiense – P. geniculatum – P. germanicum – P. gibbosum – P. giganteum – P. glabrum – P. glaucifolium – P. glaucocladum – P. glaucum – P. gossweileri – P. gracile – P. gracilescens – P. grandiflorum – P. griffithii – P. haareri – P. hamiltonii – P. helvolum – P. henryanum – P. hirsutum – P. hohenackeri – P. holcoides – P. hordeiforme – P. hordeoides – P. humboldtianum – P. humile – P. identicum – P. imberbe – P. implicatum – P. inclusum – P. incomptum – P. indicum – P. intectum – P. intertextum – P. italicum – P. jacquesii – P. japonicum – P. javanicum – P. kamerunense – P. karwinskyi – P. kirkii – P. kisantuense – P. lachnorrhachis – P. laevigatum – P. lanatum – P. lanuginosum – P. latifolium – P. laxior – P. laxum – P. lechleri – P. ledermanni – P. leekei – P. leonis – P. linnaei – P. longifolium – P. longisetum – P. longissimum – P. longistylum – P. macrochaetum – P. macropogon – P. macrostachyon – P. macrostachys – P. macrostachyum – P. macrourum – P. maiwa – P. malacochaete – P. marquisense – P. massaicum – P. megastachyum – P. merkeri – P. mexicanum – P. mezianum – P. mildbraedii – P. molle – P. mollissimum – P. mongolicum – P. monostigma – P. montanum – P. multiflorum – P. mutilatum – P. myosuroides – P. myurus – P. natalense – P. nemorum – P. nepalense – P. nervosum – P. nicaraguense – P. nigricans – P. nigritarum – P. niloticum – P. nitens – P. nodiflorum – P. notarisii – P. nubicum – P. numidicum – P. obovatum – P. occidentale – P. ochrops – P. orientale – P. orthochaete – P. ovale – P. oxyphyllum – P. pallescens – P. pallidum – P. panormitanum – P. pappianum – P. parisii – P. parviflorum – P. paucisetum – P. pauperum – P. pedicellatum – P. pennisetiforme – P. pentastachyum – P. persicum – P. perspeciosum – P. peruvianum – P. petiolare – P. petraeum – P. phalariforme – P. phalaroides – P. pilcomayense – P. pirottae – P. plukenetii – P. plumosum – P. polycladum – P. polygamum – P. polystachion – P. polystachyon – P. preslii – P. prieurii – P. pringlei – P. procerum – P. prolificum – P. proximum – P. pruinosum – P. pseudotriticoides – P. pumilum – P. pungens – P. purpurascens – P. purpureum – P. pycnostachyum – P. qianningensis – P. quartinianum – P. ramosissimum – P. ramosum – P. rangei – P. refractum – P. respiciens – P. reversum – P. richardii – P. rigidum – P. riparioides – P. riparium – P. robustum – P. rogeri – P. rueppelianum – P. rufescens – P. rupestre – P. ruppellii – P. sagittatum – P. sagittifolium – P. salifex – P. sampsonii – P. scaettae – P. scandens – P. schimperi – P. schliebenii – P. schweinfurthii – P. sciureum – P. sclerocladum – P. scoparium – P. secundiflorum – P. sericeum – P. setaceum – P. setigerum – P. setosum – P. shaanxiense – P. sichuanense – P. sieberi – P. sieberianum – P. siguiriense – P. simeonis – P. sinaicum – P. sinense – P. snowdenii – P. somalense – P. sordidum – P. spectabile – P. sphacelatum – P. spicatum – P. squamulatum – P. stapfianum – P. stenorrhachis – P. stenostachyum – P. stolzii – P. stramineum – P. subangustum – P. subeglume – P. swartzii – P. tempisquense – P. teneriffae – P. tenue – P. tenuifolium – P. tenuispiculatum – P. thulinii – P. thunbergii – P. tiberiadis – P. togoense – P. trachyphyllum – P. triflorum – P. trisetum – P. tristachyon – P. tristachyum – P. triticoides – P. typhoides – P. typhoideum – P. uliginosum – P. uniflorum – P. unisetum – P. vahlii – P. validum – P. variabile – P. versicolor – P. verticillatum – P. villosum – P. violaceum – P. viride – P. vulcanicum – P. vulpinum – P. weberbaueri – P. yemens –
Name

Pennisetum Pers.
References

Chemisquy, M.A., Giussani, L.M., Scataglini, M.A., Kellogg, E.A. & Morrone, O. 2010. Phylogenetic studies favour the unification of Pennisetum, Cenchrus and Odontelytrum (Poaceae): a combined nuclear, plastid and morphological analysis, and nomenclatural combinations in Cenchrus. Annals of Botany, 106(1): 107–130. DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcq090 Full text PDF Reference page.
GBIF.

Vernacular names
suomi: Sulkahirssit

Pennisetum /ˌpɛnɪˈsiːtəm/[5] is a widespread genus of plants in the grass family, native to tropical and warm temperate regions of the world. They are known commonly as fountaingrasses (fountain grasses).[6][7][8][9] Pennisetum is considered a synonym of Cenchrus in Kew's Plants of the World Online.[10]

Taxonomy

Pennisetum is closely related to the genus Cenchrus,[11] and the boundary between them is unclear.[12] Cenchrus was derived from Pennisetum and the two are grouped in a monophyletic clade.[13] Some species now in Pennisetum were once members of Cenchrus, and some have been moved back. A main morphological character used to distinguish them is the degree of fusion of the bristles in the inflorescence, but this is often unreliable. In 2010, researchers proposed to transfer Pennisetum into Cenchrus, along with the related genus Odontelytrum.[14] The genus is not accepted as separate from Cenchrus in Kew's Plants of the World Online database.[10]
Species
Pennisetum alopecuroides
Pennisetum hohenackeri
Pennisetum orientale
Pennisetum pedicellatum
Pennisetum alopecuroides

The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families lists the following species:[2]

Pennisetum alopecuroides – Chinese fountaingrass, foxtail fountaingrass, swamp-foxtail – Australia, East + Southeast Asia
Pennisetum annuum – Peru
Pennisetum articulare – Marquesas
Pennisetum basedowii – Australia
Pennisetum beckeroides – Ethiopia
Pennisetum caffrum – Madagascar, Réunion
Pennisetum chilense – Chile, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia
Pennisetum clandestinum – kikuyu grass – central + eastern Africa
Pennisetum complanatum – Nicaraguan fountaingrass – Veracruz, Central America
Pennisetum crinitum – Mexico
Pennisetum × cupreum – New Guinea
Pennisetum distachyum – Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala
Pennisetum divisum – deserts from Mauritania to western India
Pennisetum domingense – Cuba, Hispaniola
Pennisetum durum – Mexico
Pennisetum exiguum – Madagascar
Pennisetum flaccidum – flaccid grass, Himalayan fountaingrass – Himalayas, Central Asia, China, Mongolia
Pennisetum flexile – Kashmir
Pennisetum foermerianum – Namibia
Pennisetum frutescens – Paraguay, Argentina
Pennisetum glaucifolium – Eritrea, Ethiopia
Pennisetum glaucum – pearl millet, bulrush millet, cattail millet, horse millet, Indian millet, yellow bristlegrass
Pennisetum gracilescens – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan
Pennisetum henryanum – Marquesas
Pennisetum hohenackeri – Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Madagascar, India, Nepal, Pakistan
Pennisetum hordeoides – western + central Africa, India, Nepal, Myanmar
Pennisetum humile – Ethiopia
Pennisetum intectum – Peru, Ecuador
Pennisetum lanatum – Afghanistan, northern India, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Nepal, Tibet
Pennisetum latifolium – Uruguay fountaingrass – South America from Colombia to Uruguay
Pennisetum laxius – Sahel in Africa
Pennisetum ledermannii – Cameroon
Pennisetum longissimum – China
Pennisetum longistylum – Eritrea, Ethiopia
Pennisetum macrostachyum – Pacific fountaingrass – Java, Borneo, Papuasia
Pennisetum macrourum – African feather grass, bedding grass, waterside-reed – Africa, Yemen, Saudi Arabia
Pennisetum massaicum – Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe
Pennisetum mezianum – Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Namibia, Limpopo
Pennisetum mildbraedii – Rwanda, Zaire, Uganda
Pennisetum monostigma – Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Cameroon, islands in Gulf of Guinea
Pennisetum montanum – Peru, Bolivia, Argentina
Pennisetum nervosum – bentspike fountaingrass – South America; naturalized in Belize, Nicaragua, Mexico, California, Texas
Pennisetum nodiflorum – central Africa
Pennisetum nubicum – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Saudi Arabia
Pennisetum occidentale – Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Pennisetum orientale – white fountaingrass, Oriental pennisetum – North Africa, Middle East, Central Asia, Indian Subcontinent
Pennisetum pauperum – Ecuador incl Galápagos
Pennisetum pedicellatum – annual kyasuwa grass, deenanth grass, hairy fountaingrass – Cape Verde, Africa, Madagascar, southern Asia from Arabia to Vietnam
Pennisetum peruvianum – Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Pennisetum petiolare – petioled fountaingrass – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan
Pennisetum pirottae – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan
Pennisetum polystachion (L.) Schult. – feather pennisetum, mission grass, thin Napier grass – Africa, southern Asia from Arabia to Vietnam, Indian Ocean islands
Pennisetum preslii – from Mexico to Peru
Pennisetum procerum – Uganda, Kenya
Pennisetum prolificum – southern Mexico
Pennisetum pseudotriticoides – Madagascar
Pennisetum pumilum – Ethiopia
Pennisetum purpureum – Napier grass, Uganda grass, elephant grass, barner grass, Merker grass – Africa, Aldabra, Arabian Pen; naturalized in parts of Asia, Australia, Americas, various islands
Pennisetum qianningense – Sichuan, Yunnan
Pennisetum ramosum – central + eastern Africa
Pennisetum rigidum – northern Argentina
Pennisetum riparium – East Africa
Pennisetum rupestre – Colombia, Peru
Pennisetum sagittatum – Peru, Bolivia
Pennisetum schweinfurthii – Ethiopia, Sudan
Pennisetum shaanxiense – China
Pennisetum sichuanense – Sichuan, Yunnan
Pennisetum sieberianum – Africa
Pennisetum sphacelatum – Africa, Comoros
Pennisetum squamulatum – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania
Pennisetum stramineum – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Yemen, Saudi Arabia
Pennisetum tempisquense – Costa Rica
Pennisetum thulinii – Ethiopia
Pennisetum thunbergii – Africa, Yemen
Pennisetum trachyphyllum – central Africa
Pennisetum trisetum – central Africa
Pennisetum tristachyum – South America
Pennisetum uliginosum – Ethiopia
Pennisetum unisetum – Natal grass, silky grass – Africa, Yemen, Saudi Arabia
Pennisetum villosum R.Br. ex Fresen. – feathertop, long-style feathergrass, white foxtail – Africa, Yemen, Saudi Arabia; naturalized in New Zealand, Mediterranean, scattered places in Americas
Pennisetum violaceum – Sahara, Sahel
Pennisetum weberbaueri – Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru
Pennisetum yemense – Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Eritrea

Description

As currently envisioned, Pennisetum is a genus of 80 to 140 species.[7][11][12][14] The various species are native to Africa, Asia, Australia, and Latin America, with some of them widely naturalized in Europe and North America, as well as on various oceanic islands.[2]

They are annual or perennial grasses. Some are petite while others can produce stems up to 8 meters tall.[12] The inflorescence is a very dense, narrow panicle containing fascicles of spikelets interspersed with bristles. There are three kinds of bristle, and some species have all three, while others do not. Some bristles are coated in hairs, sometimes long, showy, plumelike hairs that inspired the genus name, the Latin penna ("feather") and seta ("bristle").[12]
Uses

The genus includes pearl millet (P. glaucum), an important food crop. Napier grass (P. purpureum) is used for grazing livestock in Africa.

Several species are cultivated as ornamental plants, notably P. advena, P. alopecuroides, P. orientale, P. setaceum, and P. villosum. The cultivar “Fairy Tails’ is a recipient of the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.[15][16]
Ecology
Invasive Pennisetum setaceum growing on a lava flow in Hawaii

Many Pennisetum grasses are noxious weeds, including kikuyu grass (P. clandestinum) and feathertop grass (P. villosum).

The herbage and seeds of these grasses are food for herbivores, such as the chestnut-breasted mannikin (Lonchura castaneothorax), the caterpillar of the butterfly Melanitis phedima, and the larvae of the fly genus Delia.

The genus is a host of the pathogenic fungus Cochliobolus sativus.
References

Richard, Louis Claude Marie 1805. in Persoon, Christiaan Hendrik, Synopsis plantarum,seu Enchiridium botanicum, complectens enumerationem systematicam specierum hucusque cognitarum, page 72 in Latin
Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
lectotype designated by Chase, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 22: 210 (1921)
Tropicos, Pennisetum Rich.
Sunset Western Garden Book. 1995. 606–07.
Pennisetum. Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).
Pennisetum. The Jepson eFlora 2013.
Pennisetum. USDA PLANTS.
Identified gaps for Pennisetum genepool. Archived 2011-07-25 at the Wayback Machine Crop Wild Relatives. CIAT.
"Pennisetum Rich". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
Martel, E., et al. (2004). Chromosome evolution of Pennisetum species (Poaceae): implications of ITS phylogeny. Plant Systematics and Evolution 249(3-4), 139-49.
Wipff, J. K. Pennisetum Rich. The Grass Manual. Flora of North America.
Ozias-Akins, P., et al. (2003). Molecular characterization of the genomic region linked with apomixis in Pennisetum/Cenchrus. Functional & Integrative Genomics, 3(3), 94-104.
Chemisquy, M. A., et al. (2010). Phylogenetic studies favour the unification of Pennisetum, Cenchrus and Odontelytrum (Poaceae): a combined nuclear, plastid and morphological analysis, and nomenclatural combinations in Cenchrus. Annals of Botany 106(1), 107-30.
"Pennisetum 'Fairy Tails'". RHS. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
"AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 107. Retrieved 12 June 2019.