Scientific Family
Poaceae
Synonyms
Panicum crus-galli
Other common names
Cockspur
Japanese millet
Large barnyard grass
Watergrass
Plant type
Grasses
Riparian
No
Grass Description
Origin
Introduced
Season
Warm
Frequently found as a weed in irrigated fields and ditches; grows in moist, disturbed sites.
Plant Community
Disturbed Areas
Low elevation
2000
High elevation
7000
General Description
Coarse annual 20 to 48 inches tall. Rough bristly seedhead.
Annual plant with stems 1-1/2 to 4 feet tall, spreading, erect; blades to 25 inches long, 1-1/4 inches wide, usually hairless; sheaths hairless; ligules absent; bristles and long hairs of the seedhead conspicuous.
Grass type
Annual
Rhizomes
No
Stolons
No
Clump Diameter 2 ft or more
No
Bushy - highly branched
No
Height with Seedheads
24 inches or more
Seedhead Structure
Branched - contracted
Seedhead droops
No
First bloom month
July
Last bloom month
September
Flower Characteristics
Flowers per Spikelet
Multi-flowered
Spikelets One-Sided
No
Awns
1/4 inch to 1 inch
Three Awns
No
Awns bent
No
Flower and Seedhead Notes
Spikelets are covered with stout, spine-like hairs at or below the nodes of the seedhead branches; hairs sometimes longer than the spikelets; two florets per spikelet; fertile floret ovoid.
Vegetative Characteristics
Blade is hairy
Yes
Blade margins white
No
Blade cross-section
Flat
Blades to 26 inches long, 1/4 to 3/4 inch wide, usually smooth without hairs, occasionally sparsely hairy with straight rather stiff hairs.
Sheath is hairy
No
Tufts of hair top of sheath or collar
No
Ligule
Absent
Auricles
No
Poor to fair.