In the UAE, this species occurs the mountainous parts of the UAE, in the vicinity of Jebel Hafeet (Sakkir and Brown 2014), the Hajar Mountains, and the Ru'us al-Jibal (Wadi Bih [Feulner 2011]; the actual record is from within Oman, but considered likely to also be present within the UAE). Feulner (2016) recorded a single dry specimen from gravel terrace above Wadi Ghayl in Wadi Wurayah. RBG Edinburgh Herbarium holds two specimens of this species, including one from the alluvial outwash of <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00358219"">Wadi Al Qawr and Wadi Hatta</a>. It is generally found at lower elevations (G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019). G.R. Brown (pers. comm. 2020) observed large numbers of the species in Umm Al Quwain, Sharjah, and again in Al Ain, and considers it to also be common locally in the mountains. Al Meharibi et al. (2019) consider the species to be restricted to wadis on Jebel Hafeet. The species has an apparently global natural distribution according to Plants of the World online (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018), which considers it to be native to large parts of Africa, temperate Asia to the Indian Subcontinent, and the Americas (west-central U.S.A. to Mexico, and from Peru to Argentina). It is introduced/naturalised to Hawai'i and the UK, and probably elsewhere. It is considered a weed by some references (e.g. Randall 2012).

This species is widespread across the northern part of the UAE (Jongbloed et al. 2003), however it is not clear if this refers instead to D. sanguinalis (MEW 2010). The global distribution of this species extends from the Mediterranean to Central Asia and Malesia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

It is known to be widespread in the northern and eastern parts of the UAE (MEW 2010). The origin of this species is unclear, although CABI (2019) consider it to have originated in Asia, it is now distributed throughout the tropics and sub-tropics of both hemispheres. Plants of the World Online (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019) consider the species to be native to Africa and Asia but introduced elsewhere; they list the UAE as a native country of occurrence for this species.

This species is widespread across the northern parts of the UAE and on offshore islands (Jongbloed et al. 2003, MEW 2010). Although apparently absent from the Hajar Mountains and the east coast (Jongbloed et al. 2003), Feulner (2011) reports it from ""wadis, lower slopes, foothills and alluvial plains of the mountains"". Feulner (2016) found the species in Wadi Wurayah, but in only two peri-anthropic localities, and reports the species from a peri-urban area at Khor Fakkan; presence east of the Hajar Mountains is probably the result of introduction. The species is recorded from Wadi Al Ain (Mousa and Fawzi 2009) and from Jebel Hafeet (Fawzi and Ksiksi 2012). The global distribution of the species extends from Macaronesia, across Africa (Sahara to Egypt and south to Tanzania), and east through the Arabian Peninsula to Myanmar (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018). Norton et al. (2009) give the regional distribution as Qatar, Bahrain, eastern Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

This is a widespread species in the Hajar Mountains (Jongbloed et al. 2003) in the eastern UAE, including in Dubai, Al Ain, Sharjah, Ajman and R'as al-Khaimah (Karim and Dakheel 2006), and south to Jebel Hafeet (Wadi Tarabat; Brown 2005). Al Meharibi et al. (2019) show a distribution throughout the Hajar Mountains in the eastern UAE, to the east coast. The species is also recorded from Wadi Helo (El-Keblawy et al. 2016), and from the Ru'us al Jibal, although confusion with other species of Cymbopogon is possible (Feulner 2011), and it is uncertain if records are from parts of the Ru'us al-Jibal within the UAE. The overall distribution is uncertain as this species is easily confused with C. schoenanthus, and Feulner (2016) considered only the latter species to be present in Wadi Wurayah. The global distribution of this species extends from West Africa (Senegal and Mauritania) to north-eastern and eastern tropical Africa, to the Arabian Peninsula and ad north India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species is common along the northern Arabian Gulf coast from Taweela in Abu Dhabi Emirate to Ra's al Khaimah (Brown et al. 2007, Al Mehairbi et al. 2019) and it has also been recorded from the eastern coast at Dibba (Jongbloed et al. 2003, MEW 2010). Al Mehairbi et al. (2019) show presence along the Abu Dhabi coast, and inland in the Emirate in oases, wet sabkha and brackish areas. The global distribution of this species is from Macaronesia and south-east Spain across to Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

This species was recorded in Umm Al Quwain within the UAE (Brown et al. 2006). The estimated EOO for this species is 43 km². It is considered to occur at one threat-based location in regards to ongoing development. Globally, the native range of this species spans from across northern Africa to Iran, including the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species has been recorded on sand and in urban gardens in the UAE, as well as from offshore islands (Jongbloed et al. 2003). The species is absent from the Ru'us al-Jibal but is common in the Western Hajar Mountains of the Musandam Peninsula (Feulner 2011). RBG Edinburgh Herbarium holds records from <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00357529"">Al Ain</a> (Coll. L. Boulos and Al-Hasan, 1986; Al Ain Hotel garden and adjacent irrigated areas), <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00357530"">Khor Fakkan</a> (Coll. L. Boulos and Al-Hasan, 1986; hotel garden near sea shore), <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00357531"">Nachali Oasis</a>, Dubai (Coll. R.C. Hardwick, 1979; irrigated area), and <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00357537"">Abu Dhabi old town</a> (Coll. R.A. Western, 1982; abandoned camel stables). Plants of the World online (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019) consider the native range of this species to be the tropical and subtropical Old World, from western Africa to East Asia. However other sources disagree; GRIN (2019) consider the origin of the species to be obscure but it to be widely naturalised in the tropics and subtropics. <a href=""https://keyserver.lucidcentral.org/weeds/data/media/Html/chloris_barbata.htm"">Weeds of Australia </a>consider it to most likely native to Central and South America or perhaps south-east Asia. Norton et al. (2009) considered it to be introduced to Qatar.

This is widespread species found throughout the UAE (MEW 2010), although apparently absent east of the Hajar Mountains (Jongbloed et al. 2003), and Al Mehairbi et al. (2019) show it to be absent from central areas of the Arabian Gulf coast (perhaps as a result of habitat conversion) and from the far west. The native range of this species is from the Sahara to Central Asia and south-west Iran (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

In the UAE, the species has been recorded in wadi beds in the Wadi Wurayah National Park (G. Brown pers. comm. 2019) and a ravine on the slopes of Jebel Qitab in the UAE (Feulner 2016), in addition to being recorded once from Jebel Masafi (Jongbloed et al. 2003). These records are from a range of elevations (Feulner 2014). The species is likely to be present in all wadi areas south of the Ru'us al-Jibal (G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019), but has been overlooked. Globally, this species occurs in North Africa, southern Europe, the Middle East, Pakistan and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).