Jaragua grass (Hyparrhenia rufa)

Local name: Jaragua grass, Faragua grass, Yaragua grass, Puntero, Veyale, Senbelet, Yellow spike thatching grass, Thatching grass.

Tufted grass with culms up to 60-240 cm tall. Panicles are loose and narrow up to 50 cm long. Jaragua is a fast-growing perennial and mostly grown in spring to autumn. Jaragua grass is common  on  seasonally  flooded  grassland  and open woodlands. Dry matter yields up to 19 ton per hactare have been recorded. It is a coarse tropical tall growing grass which requires well drained sandy loam soils.

Nutritive value

Jaragua grass is used for fodder and silage and is highly palatable, mainly used for beef production.  When it  becomes tall, it  is not  highly  palatable to  the livestock. It recovers quickly from grazing and must be cut frequently to control flowering. Also used for pulp for paper. The average content of protein is 7-9% at flowering stage.