Plant Management in Florida Waters - An Integrated Approach

Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants - University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences & Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Invasive Plant Management Section

Para grass

Home / 1. Why Manage Plants? / Florida's Most Invasive Aquatic Plants / Para grass

Quick Facts MORE INFO
Scientific name	Urochloa mutica
Origin	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
2017 public waters / plant acres	195 (42%) / 1,203
2017 Waters / acres controlled	8 / 993

Urochloa mutica

Urochloa mutica

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

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

Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, Status of the Aquatic Plant Maintenance Program in Florida Public Waters, Annual Report – Fiscal Year 2016-2017.