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Echinochloa turneriana (Domin) J.M. Black. |
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Graminae It is officially called channel millet in Australia. Other names are native, swamp, western or wild millet, and wild or native sorghum. Natural habitat. Seasonally flooded heavy clay soils. A robust, tall-growing annual grass closely allied to Japanese millet and white panicum. It has rather stout stems from less than 1 m to over 2 m high. Occurs naturally in New South Wales, Northern Territory, South Australia and Queensland. In summer after seasonal flooding. 100-200 m in Australia. Although it is a most important cattle-finishing grass in low-rainfall areas of central Australia receiving from 250 to 375 mm of rain a year, this grass is essentially a flood-plain grass and the seed will not germinate unless flooded. Light rains do not germinate the seed in the heavy cracking clay soils. Flooding occurs when the catchment area, mainly of heavy, self-mulching grey and brown cracking clays, receives heavy rainfalls of the order of 75 mm or more over a period of a few days to a week. It will not tolerate drought. It usually grows in heavy cracking clays and silty clays which will hold moisture for long periods. Excellent.Vigour of growth and growth rhythm It grows rapidly and seeds in a matter of three months or so. It does not recuperate from heavy grazing, but in the natural habitat in western Queensland it is seldom grazed to its full capacity because there is usually excess feed for the cattle available.Suitability for hay and silage Good if it is accessible.Value as a standover or deferred feed Excellent. It allows cattle to be finished for market for three to four months after the coastal and near coastal season is finished in Queensland and the cattle bring good prices. Its fast growth, palatability and nutritive value and its availability when other fodders are deteriorating. Its lack of readily available seed supplies. It is usually found from latitudes 17 to 29°S in Australia. It is extremely palatable both green and in the ripened state with a heavy seed-head. It tolerates and depends on seasonal flooding but not permanent water. No figures have been obtained, but soil analyses from sites where it grows well reveal very high available phosphorus figures from 200- 400 ppm with up to 1 000 ppm at depth. It is also high in exchangeable calcium and magnesium.Seed production and harvesting It seeds very heavily in a good season and could be harvested with a combine if seed were in demand. The terrain would be rough to negotiate and would require well-sprung vehicles. One of the most important cattle-finishing grasses on the irregularly flooded 2-3 million hectare Channel Country of the Georgina, Diamantina and Bulloo rivers arid Cooper Creek in south-west Queensland. It is well worth trying in similar climates outside Australia. The grain would be a valuable human food in dry times. No quantitative figures have been recorded.Grass genera of the world: Information about botany, ecology etc. of the Eriochloa genus; links to photographs and drawings Everist, 1975; Skerman, 1947. It grows on soils of relatively high pH, from pH 7.0-8.0, but not on saline soils. |