Changes

The grain of ''Eragrostis plana'' is eaten as a famine food. ''Eragrostis plana'' is considered a poor grazing grass, but is utilized late in the rainy season in more arid regions. In Lesotho it is woven into hats, baskets, necklaces and bangles, and made into ropes and plaited items used in funerals. In South Africa the root is used to treat menorrhagia and impotence.

Densely tufted perennial grass up to 1 m tall, without rhizomes or stolons; stem (culm) erect, unbranched. Leaves alternate, simple; leaf sheath glabrous, strongly compressed, keeled; ligule a line of hairs; blade linear, 10–80 cm × 1.5–5 mm, flat or folded, glabrous, sometimes with punctate glands along the midvein. Inflorescence a narrowly oblong to narrowly ovoid panicle 10–35 cm long, branches ascending or spreading; primary branches not in whorls, but sometimes loosely clustered, terminating in a fertile spikelet. Spikelet on a pedicel 1.5–2 mm long, linear to narrowly oblong, 6–13.5 mm × 0.5–2 mm, 9–13-flowered, with bisexual florets; glumes unequal, the lower 0.5–1 mm long, the upper 1–1.5 mm long, keeled; lemma 2–2.5 mm long, keeled, membranous with prominent lateral veins, olive green; palea with slender keel, persistent; stamens 3, anthers (1–)1.5–2 mm long; ovary superior, with 2 stigmas. Fruit an oblong to ellipsoid caryopsis (grain) c. 1 mm long.