Mexican Panicgrass
Panicum hirticaule

Family: Poaceae

Large-seeded annual grass reaching 3’ or more depending on water availability. Inflorescence appear July through October.

Part sun with regular water.

Large-seeded and loved by granivorous birds. An edible crop for humans—the grain is cooked and eaten like millet.

Panicum is a classical Latin name for millet, while hirticaule means hairy-stemmed. There are 272 species of Panicum native throughout the tropical regions of the world, with a few species extending into the northern temperate zone.

Found on dry slopes and plains, sandy washes, and open woodlands below 7,000 ft. from Oregon south to Nevada and California, east through Arizona and New Mexico to Texas and Oklahoma; south to South America.

Photo by Sue Carnahan, iNaturalist
Panicum hirticaule on SEINET