''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
plants of the
broomsedge tribe within the
grass family
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns and ...
.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
,
Eurasia
Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelag ...
,
Australia, the
Americas, and assorted oceanic islands. Several species are cultivated and naturalized in areas outside their native habitats.
[Welker, C. A. D. & H. M. Longhi-Wagner. 2012. The genera ''Eriochrysis'' P. Beauv., ''Imperata'' Cirillo and ''Saccharum'' L. (Poaceae - Andropogoneae - Saccharinae) in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Botany 35(1): 87–105.]
''Saccharum'' includes the sugarcanes. They have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are generally rich in sugar, and measure two to six m (6 to 19 ft) tall. All sugarcane species interbreed and the major commercial cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
s are complex hybrids.
Species
, Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants ...
accepted the following species:[
* '' Saccharum alopecuroidum'' (L.) Nutt. - southeastern USA
* '' Saccharum angustifolium'' (Nees) Trin. - South America
* '']Saccharum asperum
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Nees) Steud. - South America
* '' Saccharum baldwinii'' Spreng. - southeastern USA
* '' Saccharum beccarii'' (Stapf) Cope - Sumatra
* '' Saccharum brevibarbe'' (Michx.) Pers. - southeastern USA
* ''Saccharum coarctatum
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Fern.) R. Webster - southeastern USA
* ''Saccharum contortum
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Baldwin ex Elliott) Nutt. - southeastern USA
* ''Saccharum fallax
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' Balansa - China, Assam, southeast Asia
* ''Saccharum filifolium
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' Steud. - Afghanistan, Himalayas
* ''Saccharum formosanum
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Stapf) Ohwi - southern China
* ''Saccharum giganteum
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Walt.) Pers. - southeastern USA, Cuba, Jamaica, Paraguay, Argentina
* ''Saccharum griffithii
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' Munro ex Aitch. - from Yemen to Bangladesh
* ''Saccharum intermedium
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oceani ...
'' Welker & Peichoto
* ''Saccharum kajkaiense
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Melderis) Melderis - Oman, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan
* ''Saccharum longesetosum
''Saccharum'' is a genus of tall perennial plants of the broomsedge tribe within the grass family.
The genus is widespread across tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions in Africa, Eurasia, Australia, the Americas, and assorted oce ...
'' (Andersson) V.Naray. ex Bor - China, Himalayas, Indochina
* '' Saccharum maximum'' (Brongn.) Trin. - Pacific Islands
* '' Saccharum narenga'' (Nees ex Steud.) Hack. - China, Indian Subcontinent, Indochina, Ethiopia
* ''Saccharum officinarum
''Saccharum officinarum'' is a large, strong-growing species of grass in the genus '' Saccharum''. Its stout stalks are rich in sucrose, a simple sugar which accumulates in the stalk internodes. It originated in New Guinea, and is now cultivate ...
'' L. - New Guinea; naturalized in many warm places
* '' Saccharum robustum'' Brandes & Jesw. ex Grassl - New Guinea
* '' Saccharum rufipilum'' Steud. - China, Indian Subcontinent, Indochina
* '' Saccharum sikkimense'' (Hook.f.) V.Naray. ex Bor - eastern Himalayas
* ''Saccharum'' × ''sinense'' Roxb. – China
* '' Saccharum spontaneum'' L. - Asia, Africa, Sicily, Papuasia
* '' Saccharum stewartii'' Rajesw., R.R.Rao & Arti Garg - western Himalayas
* '' Saccharum velutinum'' (Holttum) Cope - Peninsular Malaysia
* '' Saccharum villosum'' Steud. - South America, Mesoamerica
* '' Saccharum wardii'' (Bor) Bor ex Cope - Assam, Bhutan, Myanmar
* '' Saccharum williamsii'' (Bor) Bor ex Cope - Nepal
Placed in '' Lasiorhachis'' by Plants of the World Online :
Formerly included
Numerous species are now considered better suited in other genera: ''Andropogon
''Andropogon'' (common names: beard grass, bluestem grass, broomsedge) is a widespread genus of plants in the grass family, native to much of Asia, Africa, and the Americas, as well as southern Europe and various oceanic islands.
Over 100 speci ...
, Chloris
In Greek mythology, the name Chloris (; Greek Χλωρίς ''Chlōrís'', from χλωρός ''chlōrós'', meaning "greenish-yellow", "pale green", "pale", "pallid", or "fresh") appears in a variety of contexts. Some clearly refer to different char ...
, Digitaria
''Digitaria'' is a genus of plants in the grass family native to tropical and warm temperate regions but can occur in tropical, subtropical, and cooler temperate regions as well. Common names include crabgrass, finger-grass, and fonio. They ar ...
, Eriochrysis, Eulalia, Gynerium
''Gynerium'' is a monotypic genus of Neotropical plants in the grass family, native to Mexico and Colombia, Central America, South America, and the West Indies. It is classified in its own tribe Gynerieae.
The sole species in the genus is ''G ...
, Hemarthria, Imperata, Lophopogon
''Lophopogon'' is a genus of Indian plants in the grass family.
; SpeciesBor, N. L. 1960. Grasses of Burma, Ceylon, India and Pakistan (excluding Bambuseae) i–767. Pergamon Press, Oxford
* '' Lophopogon kingii'' Hook.f. - Bihar
* ''Lophopogon ...
, Melinis, Miscanthus
''Miscanthus'', or silvergrass, is a genus of African, Eurasian, and Pacific Island plants in the grass family, Poaceae.
; Species
* ''Miscanthus changii'' Y.N.Lee – Korea
* ''Miscanthus depauperatus'' Merr. – the Philippines
* ''Miscanthus ...
, Panicum
''Panicum'' (panicgrass) is a large genus of about 450 species of grasses native throughout the tropical regions of the world, with a few species extending into the northern temperate zone. They are often large, annual or perennial grasses, grow ...
, Pappophorum, Paspalum, Perotis, Pogonatherum
''Pogonatherum'' is a genus of Asian and oceanic island plants in the grass family.
; Species
* '' Pogonatherum biaristatum'' S.L.Chen & G.Y.Sheng - Hainan
* '' Pogonatherum crinitum'' (Thunb.) Kunth - Indian Subcontinent, China, Japan, southe ...
, Pseudopogonatherum, Spodiopogon, and Tricholaena
''Tricholaena'' is a genus of Asian, African, and Italian plants in the grass family.
; Species
* ''Tricholaena capensis'' (Licht. ex Roem. & Schult.) Nees - Free State, Namibia, Cape Province
* ''Tricholaena monachne'' (Trin.) Stapf & C. ...
''.[
]
See also
* Domesticated plants and animals of Austronesia
One of the major human migration events was the maritime settlement of the islands of the Indo-Pacific by the Austronesian peoples, believed to have started from at least 5,500 to 4,000 BP (3500 to 2000 BCE). These migrations were accompanied ...
References
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q17136949
Poaceae genera