Tekijem (Cyperus cyperoides)

Tekijem (Cyperus cyperoides) is a plant species in Cyperaceae, annual grasses that grow in seasonal wetlands, open or shaded fields, swamps, ponds, rice fields, roadsides, open forests, secondary forests and shrubs at altitudes up to 1,800 m in the tropics.

C. cyperoides has an upright, triangular shape, 20-75 cm tall from a very short rhizome and has no stolon. The lanceolate-shaped leaves are narrow and long, the tips are pointed, slippery, shiny, green and grow at the bottom and at the top of the stem.

The terminal flower appears on the tip of the stem, cylindrical spiklet shaped and green. Each stem has two to seven flowers, each of which has a short or long stem that grows at the end of the stem together with the leaves.

Tekijem grows solitary or in small groups at a distance. Propagating using vegetative and generative methods using seeds. At least three sub-species are Cyperus cyperoides cyperoides, Cyperus cyperoides flavus and Cyperus cyperoides pseudoflavus.

This grass is often classified as ordinary weeds in the garden but some are invasive. This plant is sometimes cultivated for edible roots in parts of Africa where the rhizomes are roasted, the roots are used for brushes and as a treatment for vermifuge.

Kingdom Plantae
Phylum Tracheophyta
Subphylum Angiospermae
Class Liliopsida
Order Poales
Family Cyperaceae
Subfamily Cyperoideae
Tribe Cypereae
Genus Cyperus
Species: Cyperus cyperoides
Subspecies: Cyperus cyperoides ssp. cyperoides, Cyperus cyperoides ssp. flavus and Cyperus cyperoides ssp. pseudoflavus

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