Cenchrus/Kolukattai/Anjan grass is a perennial grass highly suitable for pasture/grazing land. It promising green grass type which performs well in dry land cultivation under rainfed conditions. Well drained soil with high calcium/phosphorus content is suitable. Plough the field twice or thrice with a plough to ensure good tilth. Seed required is 3-3.5 kg/acre; Spacing is 50 x 30 cm. First harvest for 70-75 days after sowing and Subsequent harvest 40-45 days once. A crop yield is 16-18 t/acre/year in 6-7 cuts; it comes up to 4-5 years. During the first 6 months, the yield is usually little low but after it establishes with self seeding the density and crop yield increases. In general crop characters are Plant height is 120-130 cm, Number of tillers/branches is 60-65, Number of leaves/plant is 550-600 and Leaf length is 25-30 cm. The nutrient for Dry matter is 28 %, Crude protein content is 9-9.5 %, Crude fibre is 34.6 % and Calcium is 0.58-0.75 %. Fresh seeds have dormancy for 6-8 months. To break dormancy, seeds are soaking in the water by using 400 gm of Azoslum/1 % potassium nitrate solution for 48 hours prior to sowing. Hand weeding can be done as and when necessary. Its highly drought resistant legume fodder grass can be intercropped with Stylosanthes scabra (Muyal Masal crop) in the ratio of 3:1 and low maintenance. It spreads very quickly (within 5 months) an entire field and will often adopt like local grass. Uses like grass, open grazing, green fodder, silage or made into is said to increase yield of milk in cow, buffalo & body weight of goat, sheep & semen segregation of Horse. Its best for both an inter-crop like coconut tree plants (any orchard) and pure-crop likes fine field, unperformed/waste land and low rainfall areas.
