20 - Capim-sapê - Imperata brasiliensis Trin. (Poaceae)

 

Perennial plant, up to 95 cm tall. Leaves 20 to 52 cm long by 0.12 to 0.18 cm wide, flat, with dense hair on the upper side. Paniculate inflorescence, maximum 20 cm, whitish, covered by long trichomes, which gives it a hairy and soft appearance. It blooms from September to February.

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How to make the roof without thatch? This was the problem of the Guarani Indians who built a house in the traditional way in the village Tekoa Itakupe, in Pico do Jaraguá. The thatch no longer grew in sufficient quantity to make a simple roof. And to think that in other times it was so abundant that entire villages and houses in the Vila de São Paulo de Piratininga were covered by roofs made with thatch grass.

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Distribution: Native throughout Central and South America. Common in open fields and sandbank.

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Situation in São Paulo: It is found on land bordering the marginal Pinheiros and roadside, in addition to vacant land, indicating old fields, but it is no longer very abundant.

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How to plant: After flowering, seeds are obtained, which must be cleaned and buried. This seems to be the best method, since its roots are difficult to transplant. The dried leaves can be used to produce cover where the seeds will germinate, in order to keep the soil moist and fresh, just as it occurs naturally.

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Uses: As a young man, he has a delicate appearance, but when he gets old he is surrounded by straw, with slow decomposition, which accumulates and gives an aspect of abandonment. After being burned in an area, it is one of the first grasses to bloom, covering the field with its white plumes. Used to light stoves and torches, as well as to cover huts and ranches, due to its flexibility and slow decomposition.

 

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LONGHI-WAGNER, HM (COORD.) POACEAE IN: LONGHI-WAGNER, HM ET AL. FANEROGAMIC FLORA OF THE STATE OF SÃO PAULO. INSTITUTE OF BOTANICS, SÃO PAULO, VOL. 1, PP: 1-281, 2001.

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LORENZI, H. DANINE PLANTS IN BRAZIL: TERRESTRIAL, AQUATIC, PARASITE AND TOXIC. PLANTARUM INSTITUTE. NOVA ODESSA, SP, 4th ED. 2008. 672P. IL.