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Plants that fill a similar niche:: Acorus calamus 'Variegatus'; Eruca vesicaria; Nekemias arborea

Tear Grass Coix lacryma-jobi

Other Common Name(s):

Phonetic Spelling

KOY LAH-krih-mah JOH-bee

Description

A tropical perennial grass grew as an annual. Native to Southeast Asia, but has naturalized in much of the southern United States. Named by Carl Linnaeus after the metaphorical tear of Job. Some varieties have seeds with hard pseudocarps and are used for jewelry, while others have softer pseudocarps and are used as cereal crops and in folk medicine. In the Cherokee Nation and the Eastern Band of Cherokee the beads of Job's tears ae used in personal attire.

Full sun to part shade; moist to wet soil.

See this plant in the following landscape:

Cultivars / Varieties:

var. ma-yuen
A cultivated variety, soft pseudocarp; South China to peninsular Malaysia and the Philippines; grain crop and in medicine
var. puellarum
Assam to Yunnan (China) and Indochina
var. stenocarpa
Eastern Himalayas to Indochina

var. ma-yuen, var. puellarum, var. stenocarpa

Tags:

#full sun tolerant #bright green #ornamental grass #moist soil #exotic looking #wet soils tolerant #partial shade tolerant #annual

leaves and flowers — leaves and flowers Yercaud-elango CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves — leaves Vinayaraj CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves — leaves BotBln CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves and flowers — leaves and flowers by Vinayaraj CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves and flowers — leaves and flowers Vinayaraj CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves and flowers — leaves and flowers Hanabishi CC0

leaves — leaves Keisotyo CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves — leaves Vinayaraj CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves — leaves Salicyna CC BY-SA 4.0

leaves — leaves Tubifex CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves — leaves Tubifex CC BY-SA 4.0

leaves — leaves Vinayaraj CC BY-SA 3.0

leaves — leaves Vanessa Salustriany CC BY-SA 4.0

seeds — seeds Lionel Allorge CC BY 4.0

Cultivars / Varieties:

var. ma-yuen
A cultivated variety, soft pseudocarp; South China to peninsular Malaysia and the Philippines; grain crop and in medicine
var. puellarum
Assam to Yunnan (China) and Indochina
var. stenocarpa
Eastern Himalayas to Indochina

var. ma-yuen, var. puellarum, var. stenocarpa

Tags:

#full sun tolerant #bright green #ornamental grass #moist soil #exotic looking #wet soils tolerant #partial shade tolerant #annual

Attributes:
Genus:

Coix

Species:

lacryma-jobi

Family:

Poaceae

Uses (Ethnobotany):

Jewelry; grain crop; medicine

Life Cycle:

Annual

Perennial

Recommended Propagation Strategy:

Seed

Country Or Region Of Origin:

Southeast Asia

Distribution:

Southeast Asia, southern US

Edibility:

Seeds as grain crop

Dimensions:

Height: 3 ft. 0 in. - 4 ft. 0 in.

Width: 0 ft. 6 in. - 2 ft. 0 in.

Whole Plant Traits:
Plant Type:

Annual

Herbaceous Perennial

Ornamental Grasses and Sedges

Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:

Deciduous

Cultural Conditions:
Light:

Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)

Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)

Soil Drainage:

Occasionally Wet

Available Space To Plant:

Less than 12 inches

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:

8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11a, 11b

Fruit:
Fruit Color:

Black

Gray/Silver

Fruit Value To Gardener:

Edible

Showy

Fruit Type:

Caryopsis

Fruit Description:

Tear-shaped pseudocarp, hard and round. Seeds of certain varieties can be used as a grain.

Flowers:
Flower Color:

Blue

Green

Flower Inflorescence:

Insignificant

Flower Value To Gardener:

Good Cut

Good Dried

Flower Bloom Time:

Fall

Summer

Flower Description:

Monoecious– flowers are different sexes, but individual plants produce both

Leaves:
Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:

Deciduous

Leaf Color:

Green

Hairs Present:

No

Stem:
Stem Is Aromatic:

No

Landscape:
Landscape Location:

Container

Resistance To Challenges:

Wet Soil