Beef, Bread and Baskets

Sub-Saharan Africa is the centre of origin for the world’s major forage grasses.
The following are some African forage grasses.

Gamba grass (Andropogon gayanus Kunth)
Brachiaria (Brachiaria brizantha (A.Rich.) Stapf)
Signal grass (Brachiaria decumbens Stapf)
Buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris L.)
Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana Kunth.)
Couch grass (Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers)

Right: Rhodes grass—
wide adaptability and tolerates drought.

Pangola grass (Digitaria eriantha Steud.) 
Guinea grass (Panicum maximum L.)
Kleingrass (Panicum coloratum L.)
Kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum Chiov.)
Napier grass (P. purpureum Schumach.)
Setaria (Setaria sphacelata (Schumach.) Moss)

Left: Brachiaria—good for
humid tropics and acid soils.

These species have been spread throughout the tropics and have gained importance in areas other than their centres of origin. Brachiaria, for example, is now sown on over 50 million hectares of rangeland for beef production in tropical America.
Another important indigenous grass of Africa is tef (Eragrostis tef). In South Africa and the USA, tef is grown as a forage grass but in Ethiopia it is the staple cereal crop. Tef shows wide adaptability and is the most widely cultivated cereal in Ethiopia. Its small grains are ground into flour. This is used to make a batter that is fermented and cooked in thin sheets on clay plates over an open fire to make injera, the traditional pancake-like bread of Ethiopia.

Not all of Africa’s grasses are able to support livestock production. Some of those that can’t feed animals have other uses in the home. Perennial grasses such as Hyparrhenia hirta and H. rufa can be grazed by livestock only while young because they become tough and unpalatable as they mature; these are used as thatching grass for traditional rural housing.

Other finer stemmed grasses are used for basket-making. Those in the Ethiopian highlands are the perennial Eleusine jaegeri and E. floccifolia, both known locally as akirma. Cattle avoid these, which become major weeds on upland pastures unless collected for basket-making. Grass stems are dyed to make a variety of attractive baskets. These (right) are used for serving bread, popcorn or toasted grains during the Ethiopian coffee ceremony.
A slightly coarser grass also used
for making household products is
Pennisetum sphacelatum.

This is an unpalatable grass common in overgrazed pastures in the highlands.
It is used for larger items, such as plates
or large baskets.

The flat plate called the sefed (left)
is used for many things in the household, including winnowing grains and pulses
and removing the traditional Ethiopian bread, or injera, from the clay cooking plate.

Basket weaving is an important activity
for rural women, providing them with
a small income and means of livelihood 
through sale of baskets.

Basket weaving is a commercially important craft in Harar, in Eastern Ethiopia.

The elaborate baskets in bright colours (right) from Harar are particularly prized for wall decoration and bring high
prices in the market.

For further information on forages grasses,
contact: 
Jean Hanson 
International Livestock Research Institute
PO Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Email: j.hanson@cgiar.org