Agriculture: Alfalfa Pest Management Guidelines

Summer Annual Weed Seedlings

Names link to more information on identification and biology.

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Barnyardgrass
Barnyardgrass
(Echinochloa crus-galli): Grass family; summer annual; first leaf dull gray-green; stem flattened, purplish; no ligule.

Sprangletop
Bearded sprangletop
(Leptochloa fasicularis): Grass family; summer annual; first leaves light green, usually with white midrib; blades somewhat rolled; sheaths loose near base of plant; ligule long, thin, membranous and tears easily.

Common lambsquarters
Common lambsquarters
(Chenopodium album): Goosefoot family; summer annual; seed leaves are narrow, with nearly parallel sides; seed leaves and early true leaves dull blue-green above and often purple below.

Cupgrass
Prairie cupgrass
(Erichloa contracta): Grass family; winter annual; light-green seedlings as distinguished from southwestern cupgrass, with short, soft hairs on leaf blade and sheath; hairlike ligule less prominent than in southwestern cupgrass.

Dodder
Dodder
(Cuscuta spp.): Morningglory family, summer annual. Leafless or with small scalelike triangular leaves about 1/16-inch in length; stems slender, twining or threadlike; vary in color from pale green to yellow or bright orange.

Green foxtail
Green foxtail
(Setaria viridis): Grass family; summer annual; leaf blade is flat, light green, and narrow; sheath red-purple around base of plant; no fine hairs on upper surface of leaf blade near collar (as in yellow foxtail); by pulling leaf sheath away from stem, fine hairs on sheath below collar region are revealed.

Witchgrass
Witchgrass
(Panicum capillare
): Grass family; summer annual; light green to red-purple and resembles crabgrass seedling but have slightly narrower leaf blades and longer silky hairs with swollen bases.

Yellow  foxtail
Yellow foxtail
(Setaria pumila): Grass family; summer annual; first blade linear, roughly 7 times longer than wide and opens almost parallel to ground; leaves rolled in bud; ligule—fringe of hairs; no auricles; no hairs on leaf-sheath margin below collar; leaf blades of young seedlings smooth on lower surface, with long hairs on basal area of upper surface; margins smooth or slightly rough.

 

Text Updated: 11/06
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