Re: Kikuyu grass

Aloha Everyone,
no idea on the mailand, but kikuyu is the primary cattle forage and lawn of high elevation areas. It does make a nice lawn, because it has the ability to smother most weeds. Not all that drought tolerant and badly affected by the yellow sugarcane aphid, Sipha flava. Having said that it is one of the more invasive grasses in Hawaii. Its ability to choke out weeds also prevents the sprouting of native plants and trees. It also seems to have properties that make forest/range fires more problematic. According to the foresters that I work with the underground rhizomes also burn underground. So the fire flares up so many feed down past where you though it was extinguished. Perhaps it ins't as bad as fountain grass in terms of increasing fire risks, but..... Keep in mind it is a federal noxious weed.

MTF
----- Original Message ----- From: "N Sterman" <TalkingPoints@plantsoup.com>
To: <medit-plants@ucdavis.edu>; <sd-urban@ucsd.edu>; "CNPSSD List Post" <cnpssd-L@ucsd.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 4:33 AM
Subject: Kikuyu grass


On another list, there has been a discussion about Kikuyu grass which evidently is gong to be used for a low water lawn adjacent to a famous Frank Lloyd Wright home in the Los Angeles area. List members that live in the northern part of the state weighed in their concern, saying that kikuyu is extremely invasive in their region. It is listed on the Invasive Pest Council's site as having "limited" invasiveness.

I'd be interested in the experiences of people in Southern California regarding this grass. This project is likely to get quite a bit of press and I'd hate for gardeners in the region to be misled into thinking Kikuyu is a good choice if it isn't.

Thanks

Nan


Nan Sterman Plant Soup, Inc. TM
TalkingPoints@PlantSoup.Com
PO Box 231034
Encinitas, CA 92023














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