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Cymbopogon nardus
Also called Ceylon Citronella, Citronella, Giant Turpentine Grass, Nard Grass, New Citronella Grass, Syrian Nard, Tambuti
Citronella grass is a perennial aromatic grass grown mainly as the source of citronella oil, a popular insect repellent. It needs full sun, warmth and regular water, and it can spread aggressively in open land.
Cymbopogon nardus, common name citronella grass, is a species of perennial aromatic plant from the family Poaceae, originating in tropical Asia. C. nardus cannot be eaten because of its unpalatable nature and is an invasive species that renders pastureland useless, since cattle will starve even in its abundance.
It is the source of an essential oil known as citronella oil, which is widely used for its natural insect-repelling properties. Essential oils are extracted from the aerial parts and applied topically or slowly burned (e.g. in a "citronella candle") as an insect repellent, particularly to deter haematophagous insects such as mosquitoes.
Citronella Grass · Lemon grass · Rosha grass · Cymbopogon grass · Lemon grass
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cymbopogon nardus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
