Fimbristylis dichotoma
Fimbristylis dichotoma, commonly known as forked fimbry or eight day grass, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to tropical areas.
Description
The annual or perennial plant, 10–80 cm tall, with numerous long stems about 2 mm in diameter, slightly three-angled, compressed below the inflorescence, node-less, smooth and has a tufted habit. The root system is fibrous, wiry, black. Short rhizomes. Leaves numerous, forming a dense tuft at the base of the stem, being at least half as long as the stem.Distribution
Fimbristylis dichotoma is widely distributed in Asia, Africa and Australia as well as in other parts of the tropics.Habitat
Fimbristylis dichotoma grows well on wet or even flooded soil; it is also found in uplands where the soil has good water retention. It is also found in swamps, open waste places, grassy roadsides, Imperata cylindrica grasslands and some plantation crops.Subdivisions
Six subdivisions are accepted.- Fimbristylis dichotoma subsp. depauperata – Andaman Islands, southeastern China, eastern Malesia, New Guinea, Bismarck Archipelago, Northern Territory, Queensland, and Western Australia
- Fimbristylis dichotoma subsp. dichotoma – tropical and subtropical Americas and Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, Arabian Peninsula, New Guinea, and Australia
- Fimbristylis dichotoma var. floribunda – central and southern Japan and southern Korea
- Fimbristylis dichotoma subsp. glauca – southern India and Sri Lanka
- Fimbristylis dichotoma subsp. ophiticola – Cuba
- Fimbristylis dichotoma subsp. podocarpa – west and central Africa, Madagascar, Indian subcontinent, Indochina, southern China, Korea, Malesia, New Guinea, Northern Territory, and Queensland