A motile facultatively anaerobic pectinolytic bacterium that grows on LB medium (5 g l−1 tryptone, 3 g l−1 yeast extract, 5 g l−1 NaCl and 15 g l−1 agar). After 48 h at 30 °C, bacteria form colonies of 0.5–1 mm in diameter with whitish translucent appearance. The optimum temperature for bacterial growth is about 33 °C and they can grow up to 40 °C. Cells are Gram-negative and rod-shaped; approx. 0.5 µm wide and 2 µm long. D. poaceiphila strains are able to grow in the presence of d-arabinose, l-arabinose, N-acetyl-d-glucosamine, d-fructose, galactaric acid, d-galactose, d-galacturonic acid, gentiobiose, glucaric acid, d-glucosamine, d-glucose, glycerol, l-lyxose, d-mannitol, d-mannose, melibiose, d-psicose, raffinose, l-rhamnose, d-ribose, salicin, sucrose, d-tagatose, d-xylose, citric acid, lactic acid, malonic acid, pyruvic acid or succinic acid as the sole carbon source but are unable to utilize cellobiose, d-gluconic acid, d-fructose-6-phosphate, d-glucose-1-phosphate, d-glucose-6-phosphate, myo-inositol or pectin. The type strain, NCPPB 569T (=CFBP 8731T), was isolated in 1958 from sugarcane in Australia. The DNA G+C content of the type strain is 52.7 mol% based on the genome sequence. Other representative isolates of this species include CFBP 1537 and CFBP 2040, which were also isolated in Australia, from sugarcane and Guinea grass, respectively.

NCPPB 569 = CFBP 8731 = ICMP 1543