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Arizona
Range Grasses Back to the Table of Contents
Growth habit: A vigorous perennial bunchgrass with
coarse stems or canes 5 to 7 feet in height, growing from an extensive
root system and thick, short, bulbous rhizomes. The stems have an open,
branching habit, producing several heads at irregular intervals.
Occurrence Blue panic is a native of India that was introduced into
the United States from Australia. It occurs primarily at moderate to
low elevations in central and southern Arizona where seeded on irrigated
or flooded areas. In the lower portions of the state where blue panic
does not winterkill, precipitation is too low to permit growth without
irrigation. With consistent or even occasional irrigation, this grass
produces an abundance of forage. It is moderately tolerant to alkali. Forage Value In spite of its coarseness, blue panic is a valuable forage producer. This is in part because it yields a large volume of forage, in part because it is highly palatable. Maximum green forage yields are obtained from May into October, though the dry grass can be grazed during the late fall and winter after it has cured.
The key to maximum forage production with this grass seems
to be heavy nitrogen fertilization and irrigation adequate to keep the
plants actively growing. In irrigated pastures rotation of grazing animals
to prevent excessive trampling of wet ground and to give the plants
a regrowth period is essential. Animals should be rotated to avoid grazing
the growing plants more closely than to an 8-10 inch stubble height. Protein content of blue panic compares favorably with
that of alfalfa. Chemical analyses run in Texas indicated a protein
content of between 11.5 and 14.5 percent.
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Cooperative
Extension,College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, The University of
Arizona