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Useful Temperate Plants

Avena abyssinica

Hochst.

Poaceae

+ Synonyms

Avena alba abyssinica (Hochst.) Á.Löve & D.Löve

Avena barbata abbreviata Hausskn.

Avena barbata pseudoabyssinica Tab.Morais

Avena sativa abyssinica (Hochst.) Körn.

Avena sativa braunii Körn.

Avena sativa hildebrandtii Körn.

Avena sativa schimperi Körn.

Avena strigosa abyssinica (Hochst.) Hausskn.

Avena strigosa abyssinica (Hochst.) Thell.

Avena strigosa glaberrima (Chiov.) Thell.

Avena strigosa pseudoabyssinica Thell.

Avena strigosa subglaberrima Malzev

Avena vaviloviana pseudoabyssinica C.E.Hubb.

Avena wiestii pseudoabyssinica Thell.

Common Name: Abyssinian Oat

No Image.

General Information

Avena abyssinica is an erect, annual grass growing up to 1.5 metres tall[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The plant provides an edible seed that is used locally. It is sometimes cultivated for this seed, especially in Ethiopia, and is also tolerated as a weed in barley and wheat crops[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References


Range

Tropical northeast Africa - Ethiopia, Djibouti, Eritraea; Arabian Peninsula - Yemen.

Habitat

A weed of arable land, especially in wheat and barley fields, found at elevations of 1,700 - 3,000 metres[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Properties

Edibility Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitAnnual
Height1.00 m
PollinatorsWind
Cultivation StatusCultivated, Semi-cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of higher elevations in the drier tropics, where it is found at elevations of 1,700 - 3,000 metres. It should be possible to grow it as a spring-sown annual in the temperate zone.
Requires a sunny position. Succeeds in any moderately fertile soil in full sun[
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. Tolerates a pH in the range 5.3 to 7.6.
A triploid species[
57
Title
Plants for Man.
Publication
 
Author
Schery. R. W.
Publisher
 
Year
 
ISBN
 
Description
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
].
Oats are in general easily grown plants but, especially when grown on a small scale, the seed is often completely eaten out by birds. Some sort of netting seems to be the best answer on a garden scale.

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked[
57
Title
Plants for Man.
Publication
 
Author
Schery. R. W.
Publisher
 
Year
 
ISBN
 
Description
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
,
183
Title
Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants.
Publication
 
Author
Facciola. S.
Publisher
Kampong Publications
Year
1990
ISBN
0-9628087-0-9
Description
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
,
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. It can be roasted and eaten as a snack[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
,
301
Title
Cornucopia II
Publication
 
Author
Facciola. S.
Publisher
Kampong Publications, California.
Year
1998
ISBN
0-9628087-2-5
Description
The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
]. It is also mixed with barley seeds to make a pancake-like bread known as 'Injera'; a local beer, known as 'tella'; and other products[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
,
301
Title
Cornucopia II
Publication
 
Author
Facciola. S.
Publisher
Kampong Publications, California.
Year
1998
ISBN
0-9628087-2-5
Description
The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
].
The seed has a floury texture and a mild, somewhat creamy flavour. It can be used as a staple food crop in either savoury or sweet dishes. The seed can be cooked whole, though it is more commonly ground into a flour and used as a cereal in all the ways that oats are used, especially as a porridge but also to make biscuits, sourdough bread etc. The seed can also be sprouted and eaten raw or cooked in salads, stews etc.
The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.
The seed ripens in the latter half of summer and, when harvested and dried, can store for several years.

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

The straw has a wide range of uses such as for bio-mass, fibre, mulch, paper-making and thatching[
171
Title
Economic Botany.
Publication
 
Author
Hill. A. F.
Publisher
The Maple Press
Year
1952
ISBN
-
Description
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some detail about the plants it does cover.
]. Some caution is advised in its use as a mulch since oat straw can infest strawberries with stem and bulb eelworm.

This species is of potential value in breeding programmes for the cultivated oats (Avena sativa), in particular it could pass on pest resistance and drought tolerance.

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ in early spring or in the autumn. Only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks.
Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2024-12-05. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Avena+abyssinica>

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