Practical
Plants

Alopecurus aequalis

Shortawn Foxtail

an annual or perennial member of the Alopecurus genus in the family Gramineae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Family
Gramineae
Life cycle
annual, perennial
Height
0.3 m
Fertility
Wind
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Wind

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - cooked. It can be used whole like millet, but is more usually ground into a flour and used with other cereals in making bread etc. The seed is small and fiddly, it is very much a famine food[177, K].

Plant part
Seed

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The whole plant is antiphlogistic, depurative and diuretic[1]. It is used in the treatment of oedema, chickenpox and snakebites[1].

Product or use
Antiphlogistic
Product or use
Depurative
Product or use
Diuretic

Environment

Range
Much of Europe, including Britain, to N. Asia.
Habitat
Wet meadows and the edges of ponds and ditches[2].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
high
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - we have no details for this species but suggest sowing the seed in situ in April and only just covering it.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

See the plants native habitat for ideas on its cultivation needs. This species is a weed of cultivated cereals and can harbour pests common to cultivated crops.

References

  1. ? A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press ISBN 0-914294-92-X

    ↩1↩2

  2. Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962-00-00

    ↩

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