Grass Description
Dry plains and hills, open woods and forest clearings, and along roadsides.
General Description
Stems erect or ascending (curving upward) and growing in dense tufts or clusters, without rhizomes. Leaves mostly below the middle of the stem in 2 vertical ranks on opposite sides of the stem.
Sheath collars are very hairy. The lower nodes of the seedhead are also hairy. Plant is robust, often more than 3 feet tall. Glumes are firm.
Flower Characteristics
Inflorescence a tight, contracted panicle, with 1 spike or cluster per stem. Awns 3/4 to 1-1/2 inches long or longer, twisted like a corkscrew, and twice geniculate (bent twice).
Vegetative Characteristics
Linear leaf blades 1/8 to 3/8 inch wide and hairless. Leaf blades mostly flat with the margins rolled inward. Bottom surface smooth, top surface roughly ribbed.
Contains diacetone alcohol which can be poisonous to livestock, hence the common name sleepygrass.