Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 25, 2026

Milium effusum

Milium effusum, the American milletgrass or wood millet, is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae, native to damp forests of the Holarctic Kingdom.

Last revised
Jul 25, 2026
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Milium effusum
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Embryophytes
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Spermatophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus: Milium
Species:
M. effusum
Binomial name
Milium effusum
Synonyms1
List
    • Agrostis effusa Lam.
    • Alopecurus effusus Link ex Kunth nom. inval.
    • Decandolia effusa (Lam.) T.Bastard
    • Melica effusa (L.) Salisb.
    • Miliarium effusum (L.) Moench
    • Milium adscendens Roxb. nom. inval.
    • Milium confertum L.
    • Milium dubium Jacquem. ex Hook.f. nom. inval.
    • Milium nepalense Nees nom. inval.
    • Milium transsilvanicum Schur
    • Milium willdenowii Lojac.
    • Paspalum effusum (L.) Raspail

Milium effusum, the American milletgrass or wood millet, is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae, native to damp forests of the Holarctic Kingdom.

The Latin specific epithet effusum means "spreading loosely".2

Habitat

Milium effusum inhabits damp, deciduous woods and shaded banks, where it grows on winter-wet, calcareous to mildly acidic clay and loam soils, and also over rocks in western Scotland.3

Distribution

It can be found in the northern United States and Canada,4 and Europe, including Britain but excluding the Mediterranean, east to Siberia and the Himalayas.5

Cultivation

The yellow-leaved cultivar 'Aureum', known as Bowles' golden grass, is cultivated as an ornamental garden plant, and in the UK has won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.67

References

References

  1. "The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species". Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  2. Harrison, Lorraine (2012). RHS Latin for Gardeners. United Kingdom: Mitchell Beazley. ISBN 978-1845337315.
  3. "Online Atlas of the British & Irish Flora".
  4. "Milium effusum". United States Department of Agriculture. 2009. Retrieved March 29, 2013.
  5. "Plants for a Future".
  6. "RHS Plantfinder - Milium effusum 'Aureum'". Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  7. "AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 64. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
Further reading

Further reading