Toothed grass (Echinochloa crus-galli)

It is always interesting to know the plants that live in the fields and meadows, since as in the forests, you can find some that could look very beautiful in your garden. Be careful, don’t get me wrong: I am not talking about extracting them from their natural environment (something that by the way is prohibited), but about finding out their scientific name and buying seeds in a nursery or garden store.

One of those could very well be the Echinochloa crus-galli. It is a herbaceous plant that, whether it is allowed to grow free or if it is kept as a seasonal lawn, is sure to bring you many joys. So, what are you waiting to meet her?

Origin and characteristics

It is a annual herb native to Europealso being found in Spain (especially the Iberian Peninsula, but also in the Balearic Islands). It is popularly known as cenizo, chapacera grass, limpet, miaina, ground mijera, rice field millet, millán, chicken foot, chicken foot or toothed grass.

Reaches a height of up to 120 centimeters. The leaves are linear, 8 to 35cm long, and 8 to 20mm wide, green in color. The flowers are grouped in inflorescences with the shape of an ascending spike 2 to 10 cm long, dense and sometimes branched, reddish in color.

What are their cares?

I know: it is not the typical plant that you would grow in a pot, but the truth is that if you have a garden or orchard, you will be interested in attracting beneficial insects, such as bees or butterflies. Therefore, what better than to plant species that can attract them 🙂.

Taking this into account, the care of our protagonist is:

• Location: outside, in full sun.
• Earth: not demanding. It grows in all types of soils.
• Irrigation: about 4 times a week in summer, a little less the rest.
• Subscriber: in spring and summer with Organic fertilizers.
• Multiplication: by seeds in spring.
• Rusticity: sensitive to frost. Its cycle is annual (it lives a few months).

What did you think of Echinochloa crus-galli?