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Taxon  Report  
Pennisetum villosum  R. Br. ex Fresen.
Feathertop
Pennisetum villosum is a perennial grasslike herb that is not native to California.
There is a high risk of this plant becoming invasive in California according to Cal-IPC.
Siskiyou Del Norte Modoc Humboldt Shasta Lassen Trinity Plumas Tehama Butte Mendocino Glenn Sierra Yuba Lake Nevada Colusa Placer Sutter El Dorado Yolo Alpine Napa Sonoma Sacramento Mono Amador Solano Calaveras Tuolumne San Joaquin Marin Contra Costa Alameda Santa Cruz Mariposa Madera San Francisco San Mateo Merced Fresno Stanislaus Santa Clara Inyo San Benito Tulare Kings Monterey San Bernardino San Luis Obispo Kern Santa Barbara Ventura Los Angeles Riverside Orange San Diego Imperial
Observation Search
~174 records in California
redone or more occurrences
within a 7.5-minute quadrangle
DJJJASONAFMM

Bloom Period
Genus: Pennisetum
Family: Poaceae  
Category: angiosperm  
PLANTS group:Monocot
Jepson eFlora section: monocot

Communities: escaped cultivar
Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + PLANTS

Alternate Names:
PLANTSCenchrus longisetus
Information about  Pennisetum villosum from other sources

[Cal-IPC] Invasive: Pennisetum villosum (feathertop) is a perennial grass (family Poaceae) with fuzzy white to light brown flowers and long narrow leaves found in the Sierra Nevada range, central coast ranges and southwestern ranges of California. It is native to Africa. It favors grasslands, dunes, and scrub and chaparral habitat. It spreads via rhizomes and seed. Seeds travel via mud, machinery, water, wind, animals, humans and dumped garden waste. Cal-IPC Rating: Watch (contributed by Mary Ann Machi)

[Wikipedia] Northeastern Africa, Arabian Peninsula native: Pennisetum villosum is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae, known by the common name feathertop grass or just feathertop.[1] It is native to northeastern Africa and parts of the Arabian Peninsula, and it is grown elsewhere as an ornamental plant. It can sometimes be found growing wild where it has escape cultivation. (contributed by Mary Ann Machi)


Suggested Citation
Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals. [web application]. 2024. Berkeley, California: The Calflora Database [a non-profit organization]. Available: https://www.calflora.org/   (Accessed: 03/29/2024).