| Digitaria | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Digitaria sanguinalis | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Panicoideae |
| Supertribe: | Panicodae |
| Tribe: | Paniceae |
| Subtribe: | Anthephorinae |
| Genus: | Digitaria Haller 1768,[1] conserved name not Heist. ex Fabr. 1759 nor Scop. 1772 nor Adans. 1763[2] |
| Synonyms[3][4] | |
| |
Digitaria is agenus of plants in thegrass family native to tropical and warm temperate regions but can occur in tropical, subtropical, and cooler temperate regions as well. Common names includecrabgrass,finger-grass, andfonio. They are slendermonocotyledonous annual and perennial lawn, pasture, and forage plants; some are often considered lawn pests.Digitus is theLatin word for "finger", and they are distinguished by the long, finger-likeinflorescences they produce.
The seeds are edible, most notably those offonio (Digitaria exilis andDigitaria iburua),Digitaria sanguinalis, as well asDigitaria compacta. They can be toasted, ground into aflour, made intoporridge orfermented to makebeer. Fonio has been widely used as astaple crop in parts ofAfrica. It also has decent nutrient qualities as aforage for cattle.[5][6]
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The prevalent species ofDigitaria inNorth America arelarge crabgrass (D. sanguinalis), sometimes known as hairy crabgrass; andsmooth crabgrass (D. ischaemum). These species often become problemweeds in lawns and gardens, growing especially well in thin lawns that are watered lightly, under-fertilized, and poorly drained. They are annual plants, and one plant is capable of producing 150,000 seeds per season. The seeds germinate in the late spring and early summer and outcompete the domesticated lawn grasses, expanding outward in a circle up to 30 cm (12 in) in diameter. In the autumn when the plants die, they leave large voids in the lawn. The voids then become prime areas for the crabgrass seeds to germinate the following season.
Biological control is preferable overherbicide use on lawns, as crabgrass emergence is not the cause of poor lawn health but a symptom, and it will return annually if the lawn is not restored with fertilization and proper watering.[7] Crabgrass is quickly outcompeted by healthy lawn grass because, as an annual plant, crabgrass dies off in autumn and needs open conditions for its germination the following spring.
