Digitaria

Digitaria is a genus of grasses found mainly in tropical and subtropical regions. Its species are recognized by finger-like clusters of slender flower spikes and include both crops and widespread weeds.

Poaceae: Poaceae is the grass family, a large plant family that includes cereals, pasture grasses, and bamboo. Digitaria belongs to this family, whose distinctive flowers and stems provide its basic botanical context.
Digitaria exilis: Digitaria exilis is an annual African grass cultivated for the small grain known as fonio. Fonio is a food crop within the genus and a major example of Digitaria’s agricultural value.
Panicum: Panicum is a genus of grasses that includes millet crops and numerous wild species. Its broad, branched flower clusters contrast with the finger-like spikes typical of many Digitaria species.
Digitaria sanguinalis: Digitaria sanguinalis is a widespread annual grass commonly called large crabgrass. Its extensive spread and conspicuous finger-like flower clusters make it a defining crabgrass example.
Spikelet: A spikelet is the basic flower-bearing unit of grasses, usually containing one or more florets. Spikelet shape and arrangement are central to distinguishing Digitaria species.
Digitaria iburua: Digitaria iburua is an African grain grass cultivated as black fonio. This crop shows that useful Digitaria species extend beyond the better-known white fonio.
Eleusine: Eleusine is a grass genus that includes the cereal crop finger millet. Its species also bear finger-like spikes, making their inflorescences easy to confuse with Digitaria.
Digitaria ciliaris: Digitaria ciliaris is a widespread tropical and subtropical annual grass known as southern crabgrass. It illustrates how similar-looking species within the genus occupy overlapping warm-climate habitats.
Inflorescence: An inflorescence is the arrangement of flowers on a plant stem or branch. Digitaria’s characteristic finger-like flowering branches are a distinctive inflorescence form.
Large crabgrass: Large crabgrass, Digitaria sanguinalis, is an annual grass that is a widespread agricultural and lawn weed. It is a familiar species-level example of the genus’s ability to colonize disturbed ground.

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