Digitaria compacta

Digitaria compacta
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Poales
Family:	Poaceae
Subfamily:	Panicoideae
Genus:	Digitaria
Species:	D. compacta
Binomial name
Digitaria compacta (Roth ex Roem. & Schult.) Veldkamp
Synonyms [1]
Axonopus corymbosus(Roxb.) Schult. Digitaria bifasciculata(Trin.) Henrard Digitaria corymbosa(Roxb.) Merr. Digitaria cruciata var. esculentaBor [2] Digitaria fascicularisLink nom. illeg. Digitaria villosaTrin. nom. inval. Panicum bifasciculatumTrin. Panicum corymbosumRoxb. Panicum fasciculare(Link) Trin. nom. illeg. Panicum fasciculatumTrin. nom. inval. Panicum imperfectumRoxb. ex Kunth nom. inval. Panicum schraderiKunth nom. illeg. Paspalum compactumRoth Paspalum corymbosum(Roxb.) Kunth Paspalum porrigensArn. ex Hook.f. nom. inval. Reimaria fascicularis(Link) Link nom. illeg. Syntherisma corymbosa(Roxb.) Hosok. Syntherisma corymbosum(Roxb.) Sasaki

Digitaria compacta is a grass species native to India and Indochina. ^{[3] [4]}

It is cultivated in the Khasi Hills of northeast India, used as a glutinous flour for making bread or porridge, and known as raishan. ^[5] It is cultivated in maize fields by sowing in April-May and harvesting the grain in September-October; the straw is harvested later after the other crops in the field have been harvested. It is often cooked like rice or even with rice (1 part raishan to two parts rice). The straw is used for winter fodder for cattle. ^[6]

See also

• Digitaria exilis , white fonio, used as a grain crop in West Africa
• Digitaria iburua , black fonio, used as a grain crop in West Africa
• Digitaria sanguinalis , considered a weed around the world, but traditionally used as a grain crop in Europe

References

1. "The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species" . Retrieved 6 February 2015.
2. "Digitaria cruciata var. esculenta Bor | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
3. W.D. Clayton; M. Vorontsova; K.T. Harman; H. Williamson (2016-02-03). "Digitaria compacta". GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
4. "Digitaria compacta (Roth) Veldkamp". Plants of the World Online. Kew Science. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
5. Prance, G.; Nesbitt, M. (2012). The Cultural History of Plants. Taylor & Francis. p. 55. ISBN   9781135958114.
6. Singh, H. B.; Arora, R. K. (1 October 1972). "Raishan (Digitaria sp.)—a minor millet of the Khasi Hills, India". Economic Botany. 26 (4): 376–380. doi:10.1007/BF02860709. ISSN   1874-9364 . Retrieved 20 January 2025. Uses the synonym Digitaria cruciata var. esculenta