How to Identify Barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli)
This plant is barnyardgrass, a member of the grass family Poaceae and a native to Europe that has become a common weed in North America. It is an annual that blooms in the summer.
The plant has tall, thick stems that often branch in their lower portions, and may grow spreading or erect. The stems are hairless and may be red or purple towards their bases.
The leaves are long, flat blades that are rolled in the bud. Barnyard grass can be easily distinguished from many other grasses as it lacks both ligules and auricles. The leaves have a distinct white or red midvein, and are hairless and smooth, with a few sparse hairs occasionally present at the base of the sheaths.
The seed head is an openly branched panicle, with each branch bearing dense clusters of large seeds. The seeds have either short, stout awns, or none at all, and there are many stout hairs on the panicle surrounding the seeds. The seeds and panicle will color purple or red as they mature.
The plant has a fibrous root system and only reproduces via seed.
Barnyard grass likes partly shaded, wet soils, and is common in cultivated crop fields, gardens, orchards and vineyards, and residential landscapes.
The plant is edible, and in some parts of the world is cultivated for its seeds.
This plant can become a highly invasive species due to its extremely fast rate of growth, being able to mature from seed within two months. It often invades various cultivated crops and can reduce yields of corn and rice by up to 20%.
Sources:
Weeds of the West, 5th Edition (1991) by Tom D. Whitson, published by the Western Society of Weed Science
University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources IPM – Weed Gallery
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United States Department of Agriculture – Plant Database
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