Ecologie :

Riverine woodland; scattered tree grassland; open grassland on light or heavy soils; Acacia scrubland; woodland clearings; fertile soils; moist soils of floodplains; lake shores; river banks; with Chloris robusta, Leptochloa caerulescens, Vetiveria nigritana; also on sandy and sandy-clayey soils; dune slopes under treelet shade with Chloris virgata, Enteropogon prieurii, Dactyloctenium aegyptium; Brachiaria ramosa; arable land; 0-2450 m alt. Varies widely in habit, plant height, lemma pubescence and awn length. Very similar to C. virgata, a larger grass with a tuft of stiff erect hairs on the lemma tips. Madeira; Canary Isl.; Cape Verde Isl.; Namibia, Caprivi Strip, S. Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland; Arabian Peninsula. Introduced in N. Africa, Madagascar, tropical Asia to China, New Zealand, Australia, N., C. & S. America. Used in pastures and in crop rototations. Naturalized as a field weed. Two geographical strains are cultivated: - giant rhodes grass from Tanzania; - Katambora rhodes grass from NE Botswana (Fl. Zambes, l.c.).