Heteropogon (contortus)
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Allegra Mount Seed Lab Manager Borderlands Restoration PO Box 1191 Patagonia, Arizona 85624 949-690-2592 borderlands.restoration@gmail.com www.borderlandsrestoration.org |
| Family Scientific Name: | Poaceae | ||
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| Family Common Name: | Grass Family | ||
| Scientific Name: | Heteropogon contortus (L.) P. Beauv. ex Roem. & Schult. | ||
| Common Name: | Tanglehead | ||
| Ecotype: | Madrean Archipelago | ||
| General Distribution: |
Tanglehead is a highly adaptable grass, occurring natively in warm regions of both hemispheres. In the U.S., it can be found in Florida, Hawaii, and throughout the southwest (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 1993+). It is often found on hillslopes and growing along roadsides or in other disturbed areas. It thrives in low-nutrient areas and it is drought tolerant (Reilly and Maher n.d.). It is an important grass for erosion control, although it can also be considered a weed because of its high adaptability (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 1993+) |
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| Propagation Goal: | Plants | ||
| Propagation Method: | Seed | ||
| ProductType: | Container (plug) | ||
| Propagule Collection: |
Seed should be collected when dark brown awns of seed begin to tangle together in a messy mat. Collect the seeds with awns attached by pulling at wads of the tangled awns. Seeds should come free very easily. Awns may be sharp and pokey, so wearing work gloves for collection is advised. |
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| Propagule Processing: |
If the seed is collected as above, there shouldn’t be much cleaning that needs to be done. Handpick large debris out of the collection. Awns do not need to be removed, as this may damage seed (Reilly and Maher n.d.). At this time, the MAPP seed facility does not have the equipment to fully clean grass seed material down to the grain. Orthodox storage is assumed. |
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| Establishment Phase: |
Seeds have a dormancy period of 6-9 months and if stored in cool, dry conditions, can have germination rates of ~60-80% (Baldos et al. 2014). If planted less than 6 months after collection, germination rates will be very low (Reilly and Maher n.d.). If seeds must be planted before the 6 month dormancy period has passed, it is possible to break the dormancy with use of 1% gibberellic acid (Reilly and Maher, Tothill 1977). If seeds are stored at greater than 20°C, their dormancy period is increased to around 12 months (Baldoes et al. 2014). |
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| References: |
Baldos, Orville C., et al. "Storage humidity and temperature affect dormancy loss and viability of tanglehead (Heteropogon contortus) seeds." HortScience 49.10 (2014): 1328-1334. Flora of North America Editorial Committee, eds. Flora of North America North of Mexico. 20+ vols. New York and Oxford, 1993+. Reilly, J. and S. Maher. “Fact Sheet for Heteropogon contortus (L.) P. Beauv. ex Roem. & Schult.” USDA NRCS Fact Sheet. USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Manhatten, Kansas. Web. https://plants.usda.gov/factsheet/pdf/fs_heco10.pdf [2017, January 16]. Tothill, J. C. "Seed germination studies with Heteropogon contortus [black spear grass, studies carried out in Queensland]." Australian Journal of Ecology (Australia) (1977). Borderlands Restoration Network (2018). BRN Native Plant Materials Program Database. Unpublished Raw Data. |
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Citation:
Allen-Cantú, Juniper; Claverie, Francesca ; McNelis, Perin; Mount, Allegra. 2018. Propagation protocol for production of Container (plug) Heteropogon contortus (L.) P. Beauv. ex Roem. & Schult. Plants Borderlands Restoration Patagonia, Arizona. In: Native Plant Network. URL: https://NativePlantNetwork.org (accessed 2025/04/21). US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Center for Reforestation, Nurseries, and Genetic Resources.
