Janochloa antidotalis (Punjabi: ਘਮੂਰ ghamur, English: blue panicgrass, synonym Panicum antidotale) is a species of grass. it is the sole species in genus Janochloa. It is a tall (up to 3 metres), coarse, woody perennial grass strong spreading rhizomes. It is native to southern Asia, ranging from the Sinai Peninsula through the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Transcaucasia, the Indian Subcontinent, and Myanmar to Vietnam. In the Indian Subcontinent it is found in the Himalaya and the Upper Gangetic Plain and specifically in various regions of the Indian state of Punjab and the Pakistan province of Punjab and the neighbouring areas of these regions.
This grass is also listed (as Panicum antidotale) by William Coldstream in his Illustrations of Some of the Grasses of the Southern Punjab with the vernacular name ghirri (Punjabi ਘਿੱਰੀ) which he however explains is not known to those landowners that he had interviewed as a separate species of Panicum but rather as an unripe form of Panicum antidotale which is generally called in Punjabi ghamur (ਘਮੂਰ).
Habitat
Janochloa antidotalis is found in rich soils that have often been improved with compost or dung be they originally of sand or clay. According to Coldstream, for some reason it seems to be found in the vicinity of caper bushes.
Usage
This grass is not considered of much use beyond its early tender stages having a bitter or brackish taste when it matures. It is grown in the southwestern United States as a forage, and can now be found there growing wild as an introduced species.
Pests and diseases
Janochloa antidotalis is susceptible to yellow stripe disease which is usually found in sugar-cane. The disease in this grass, in which the virus persists for long periods, is capable not only of infecting sugar-canes in their vicinity, but also serves as new sources of infection when diseased canes have been removed.
Names in various languages
The following dialect forms are recorded in Punjabi for this grass:
