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Common Name: Canary Grass

General Information

Phalaris canariensis is an annual plant that can grow up to 0.60 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials.

Known Hazards

The small silicious hairs on the hulls are potential carcinogens and have been linked to cancer of the oesophagus when present as a contaminant in wheat flour used in baking bread[]. The hairs are also severe skin irritants to operators during harvesting and transportation of the grain[].

Botanical References

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Range

Europe - Mediterranean.

Habitat

Dry open habitats[]. A casual of waste places in Britain[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Wind
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

An easily grown plant, succeeding in an ordinary garden soil[],but growing best on heavier, clay loam soils of medium-high fertility[]. It does not do well on poorer sandy soils[]. It is tolerant of most conditions, dry or wet[], but requires ample moisture for maximum yields[].
Plants are hardy to at least -20°c[].
Cultivated for its seed which is commonly used in wild bird food mixes[].

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked. Widely grown as a food for caged birds, the seed is rather small but can also be used as a cereal for making porridge etc[]. It can be ground into a flour and used for making cakes, puddings etc[, , , , , ]. The seed generally contains around 61.0% starch[]. They average 18.7% protein, compared to 15.0% in wheat[]. The proportions of prolamin and glutelin in the protein average 77.7%, exceeding that in wheat protein of 73.5%[]. The proteins are more deficient in lysine and threonine than wheat proteins but very high in cystine, tryptophan and phenylalanine[]. For a cereal, canary seed also appears to be very high in crude fat, 8.7%, and purified total lipid, 11.0%; containing 55% linoleic, 29% oleic, 11% palmitic, and 2.5% linolenic acids[]. Groat and roller milled flours are low in dietary fibre, soluble sugars, and total ash[]. Canary seed oil is highly unsaturated[]. The seed is similar to oats (Avena spp) in mineral composition[]. It is higher in ash, oil, and phosphorus but lower in fibre than concentrations common in corn, peas, or field beans[]. It also has higher concentrations of all eight essential amino acids than does wheat or corn, and is higher in sulphur-containing amino acids than peas or field beans[].
Leaves - cooked[]. The young plant is used[].

Medicinal

The plant is a source of Dimethyltryptamine which has hallucinogenic, hypertensive, mydriatic, neurotoxic and sympathomimetic activities[].

Other Uses

The leaves can be woven into hats and matting[].
The plant has potential as a biomass crop for fuel[].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in situ[]. The plant takes 107 days from seed sowing to maturity[].