Gajar Ghas / Congress Weed
Parthenium hysterophorus
Also known as Parthenium, Santa Maria Fever Few, Carrot Grass
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Parthenium hysterophorus
- Genus
- Parthenium
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Habitat
- A weed of human habitaitons
- Habitat type
- Wasteland
- Native to
- America
- Distribution
- Pantropical
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Recorded for Gajar Ghas.
Flower & fruit characters
Typical of the Asteraceae family — flowering plants only; individual species can differ.
Local Names
- Hindi
- गाजर घास gajar ghas, चटक चांदनी Chatak Chandani,गाजर घास gajara ghas
- Tamil
- காங்கிரஸ் களை
- Telugu
- వయ్యారిభామ
- Kannada
- ಪಾರ್ಥೇನಿಯಮ್
- Malayalam
- കോൺഗ്രസ് പുല്ല്
- Marathi
- गाजर गवत
- Gujarati
- કોંગ્રેસ ઘાસ
Gajar Ghas in India
Congress grass is one of India's most hated invasive weeds — गाजर घास gajar ghas (Hindi), காங்கிரஸ் களை (Tamil), వయ్యారిభామ (Telugu), ಪಾರ್ಥೇನಿಯಮ್ (Kannada), കോൺഗ്രസ് പുല്ല് (Malayalam), गाजर गवत (Marathi), also 'carrot grass'. Parthenium hysterophorus is recorded across Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat, blanketing roadsides, fields and waste ground.
Uses
It has no positive everyday use and is a serious problem: it causes skin allergies (dermatitis) and respiratory allergy in people, is toxic to livestock, and aggressively displaces crops and native plants. It is a species to remove (with gloves), not cultivate.
How to Identify Gajar Ghas
An erect, much-branched annual herb with soft, deeply cut, carrot-like (feathery) pale-green leaves. It carries many small creamy-white flower heads, each a tiny five-pointed button, and a single plant can produce thousands of seeds.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Congress Weed called in different Indian languages?
- गाजर घास gajar ghas (Hindi); காங்கிரஸ் களை (Tamil); వయ్యారిభామ (Telugu); ಪಾರ್ಥೇನಿಯಮ್ (Kannada); കോൺഗ്രസ് പുല്ല് (Malayalam); गाजर गवत (Marathi); કોંગ્રેસ ઘાસ (Gujarati).
- Why is congress grass harmful?
- It triggers skin and respiratory allergies in people, is toxic to livestock, and aggressively crowds out crops and native vegetation.
- How do you identify congress grass?
- Look for an erect weed with feathery, carrot-like pale-green leaves and many small five-pointed creamy-white flower heads on roadsides and waste ground.
Asteraceae
Daisy/Sunflower family
Gajar Ghas belongs to the Asteraceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
All plant problem & care guides →More in Asteraceae
View all Asteraceae →Sources: GBIF — Parthenium hysterophorus (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · iNaturalist — Parthenium hysterophorus (regional names, India observations) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Parthenium hysterophorus (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)