Summary

Widespread. Asia, Africa, North, South and Central America, Caribbean, Europe, Oceania. In many Pacific islands.
Important annual weed of upland and irrigated rice, maize, vegetables, with potential to outcompete native vegetation along waterways, lakes, and swamps, and wetlands. Prefers, moist, heavy, fertile soils, and sun or light shade.
Shallow-rooted grass, erect or along ground, reddish-purple stems, often branched, 20-60 cm tall. Leaf blades, flat, up to 22 cm long, sometimes with purplish banding. Stems, hairless except at the joints, no outgrowth at blade/sheath junction). Flowerheads, up to 15 cm long, with 5-10 widely-spaced 'spikelets' containing flowers. No bristle at end of spikelets (as in barnyard grass).
Spread: shoots from stems; seeds by wind, water, animals; animal feed; contaminant of rice seed.
Biosecurity: high risk of introduction; contaminant of rice seed.
Biocontrol: little known.
Cultural control: hand weed up to 2 months; cultivate land (plus use herbicide); increase crop density.
Chemical control: in Australia: glyphosate. In Fiji, MCPA.

Common Name

Jungle rice; it is also known as barnyard grass, or awnless barnyard grass. CABI prefers the name junglerice.

Scientific Name

Echinochloa colona. It was known previously as Panicum colonum. It is a member of the Poaceae.

AUTHORS Grahame Jackson & Aradhana Deesh
Adapted from Awnless barnyard grass (Echinochloa colona) (2018) Weeds of SE Qld and Northern NSW. Lucidcentral. (https://www.lucidcentral.org/editors-pick-animal-and-plant-identification-keys/key-to-weeds-of-se-qld-and-northern-nsw); and additional information from CABI (2019) Echinochloa colona (jungle rice) (2019). Invasive Species Compendium. (https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/20368); and from Junglerice (Echinochloa colona) (2019) UC/IPM. Agriculture & Natural Resources. University of California. (http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/WEEDS/junglerice.html (https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/17506). Photo 2 Tauʻolunga_Echinochloa_colona. Photo 3 D. Walters and C. Southwick, Table Grape Weed Disseminule ID, USDA APHIS PPQ, Bugwood.org.

Produced with support from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research under project HORT/2016/185: Responding to emerging pest and disease threats to horticulture in the Pacific islands, implemented by the University of Queensland, in association with the Pacific Community and Koronivia Research Station, Ministry of Agriculture, Fiji.

This mini fact sheet is a part of the app Pacific Pests, Pathogens & Weeds

The mobile application is available from the Google Play Store and Apple iTunes.