Common Name: Jungle Rice

General Information

Echinochloa colona is a clump-forming, annual grass producing stems 10 - 100cm long that can be ascending or decumbent.
Seen more commonly as a famine food, the plant is sometimes cultivated by local people in Africa for its edible seed[].
Jungle rice can be a serious problem in rice crops because the young plants closely resemble young rice plants[]. It can also be a weed in other crops[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

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Range

Widely distributed in the temperate, sub-tropical and tropical zones

Habitat

Waste places, cultivated fields and ditches in southern N. America where it is naturalized[]. A weed of damp places and irrigated fields in China[]. Swampy places[].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Edibility Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	1.00 m
Pollinators	Wind
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Jungle rice is an annual plant that can succeed in a wide range of environments from the temperate zone to the tropics. It can be found at elevations up to 2,000 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 22 - 30°c, but can tolerate 6 - 42°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 500 - 1,200mm, but tolerates 400 - 2,000mm[].
Succeeds in full sun or partial shade[]. Prefers a rich moist soil but should succeed in ordinary garden soil[, ]. Tolerant of moderate levels of salt in the soil[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 6.5, tolerating 5 - 7[]. It is intolerant of dry periods[].

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked[, , ]. Used as a millet[]. The seed can be cooked whole or ground into a flour and used as a mush or porridge[]. Used mainly in times of shortage[].

Young plants and shoots - raw or cooked[, ]. Eaten raw with rice[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer.
A sowing in situ in late spring might also succeed but is unlikely to ripen a crop of seed if the summer is cool and wet.