genus of annual and perennial grasses of the family Poaceae, with about 70 species distributed throughout warm regions of the world. Many are known as finger grass, or windmill grass. Feathered finger grass (C. virgata) is a weedy North American annual with feathery spikelets. Windmill grass (C. truncata) of Australia and tumble windmill grass (C. verticillata) of North America are perennial species of waste areas. Several strains of Rhodes grass (C. gayana), a tufted perennial native to South Africa, have been introduced into other areas of the world as forage and hay grasses.