Saccharum spontaneum
| Kans grass | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Panicoideae |
| Genus: | Saccharum |
| Species: |
S. spontaneum
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| Binomial name | |
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Saccharum spontaneum |
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Saccharum spontaneum (wild sugarcane, kans grass) is a grass native to the Indian Subcontinent. It is a perennial grass, growing up to three meters in height, with spreading rhizomatous roots. Commonly found in the Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands, a lowland ecoregion at the base of the Himalaya range in Pakistan, Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Bhutan. Kans grass colonises exposed silt plains created each year by the retreating monsoon floods, forming almost pure stands on the lowest portions of the floodplain. Kans grasslands are an important habitat for the Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis). In Nepal, kans grass is harvested to thatch roofs or fence vegetable gardens.
The ability to quickly colonize disturbed soil has allowed it to become an invasive species that takes over croplands and pasturelands, as has been documented in the Republic of Panama.
Uses
Saccharum spontaneum has a considerable number of regional names in the Indian Subcontinent, kash (কাশ) being common in Bengali, kohuwa (কঁহুৱা) in Assamese, kasatandi (କାଶତଣ୍ଡୀ) in Odia and Kasi (खासि) in Bodo. The use of Saccharum spontaneum is also found in Ayurveda.
The plant has hybridized with Saccharum officinarum, a domesticated sugarcane. The hybridization has produced Saccharum barberi and Saccharum sinense.
A set of species-related orphane genes, Saccharum spontaneum exhibits exceptional resistance to biotic stresses such as nematodes, fungi, bacteria and other pests and diseases, and abiotic stresses such as cold, drought, salinity and nutritionally deficient soil.