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Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants Logo    Plant Management in Florida Waters

Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants Logo    Plant Management in Florida Waters

Para grass

Quick Facts

  • Scientific name: Urochloa mutica
  • Origin: South & Africa
  • Introduction: Late 1800s, forage grass
  • Aquatic community: Emergent grass
  • Habitat: Wet soils, shorelines, floating mats
  • Distribution: Central and South Florida
  • Management effort: Complaint management
  • 2020 Acres Treated: 102

Para GrassPara Grass

Environmental and Economic Concerns

  • Sprawling grass up to 15 feet long that forms dense tufts on shorelines
  • Provides little wildlife value and crowds out native plants
  • Covers vast areas of wetlands and marshes, especially south Florida
  • Fills ditches and shallow canals, impeding water movement
  • Mats can break loose from shorelines forming floating islands

Management Options

  • Biological: None available
  • Chemical: Glyphosate, imazapyr;
  • Mechanical: Mowing; harvest or shred floating mats
  • Physical: Drawdown, desiccation, and burning

Data compiled from "What’s Happening on my Lake" by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission