A-Z Index
Statewide
zzusis
WSU Home
WSU Extension
Hortsense
Hortsense Home
|
Hortsense fact sheets
| Weeds
| Foxtail (Green, Yellow, Bristly)
Weeds
Annual bluegrass
Barnyardgrass
Bentgrass, creeping
Bermudagrass
Birdfoot Trefoil
Bittercress (Shotweed, Hairy bittercress)
Bittersweet nightshade (European bittersweet)
Black medic
Blackberry (Himalayan, Evergreen, Pacific)
Blue mustard (Purple mustard, Tenella mustard)
Brackenfern, western
Buffalobur
Bull thistle
Buttercup, creeping
Butterfly bush
Canada thistle
Catchweed bedstraw (Cleavers)
Catsear, common (False dandelion)
Chickweed, common and mouseear
Clover
Comfrey
Crabgrass
Creeping Jenny
Dandelion
Dock (Curly, Broadleaf)
Dodder
Downy brome (Cheatgrass, Downy chess)
Dwarf mistletoes
English daisy (Lawn daisy)
English ivy
Field bindweed (Wild morningglory)
Field pennycress (Fanweed)
Flixweed
Foxtail (Green, Yellow, Bristly)
Garden loosestrife
Giant hogweed
Goldenrods
Ground ivy
Groundsel, common
Hawkweeds
Hedge bindweed
Henbit
Herb Robert (Robert geranium, stinky Bob)
Horsetails (Scouringrush)
Horseweed (Marestail)
Knapweeds
Knotweeds (Bohemian, Giant, Japanese, Himalayan)
Kochia
Lambsquarters, common
Lesser celandine
Liverworts
Mallow, common (Cheeseweed, Buttonweed)
Nightshades
Oxalis (Creeping woodsorrel)
Parrotfeather and Eurasian watermilfoil
Pineappleweed
Plantain (Broadleaf, Buckhorn)
Poison hemlock
Poison ivy and Poison oak
Pokeweed
Prickly lettuce (China lettuce)
Prostrate knotweed
Puncturevine (Tackweed, Goathead)
Purple deadnettle (Red deadnettle)
Purple loosestrife (Purple lythrum)
Purslane, common
Quackgrass
Red sorrel (Sheep sorrel)
Redroot pigweed (Rough pigweed)
Redstem filaree (Stork's bill, Crane's bill)
Reed canarygrass
Russian thistle (Tumbleweed)
Ryegrass, annual (Italian ryegrass)
Salsify (Goatsbeard)
Scotch broom
Shepherd's-purse
Smartweeds
Sowthistle, annual and perennial
Speedwells
Spurges (Prostrate spurges)
St. Johnswort, common (Goatweed, Klamathweed)
Stinging nettle
Tansy ragwort
Tumblemustard (Jim Hill mustard)
Velvetgrass (Common velvetgrass)
Velvetleaf
Water primrose
Waterhemlock, western
Wild carrot (Queen Anne's lace)
Yellow nutsedge
print version
|
pdf version
|
email url
Caption: Yellow foxtail
Photo by: D.G. Swan
Weeds : Foxtail (Green, Yellow, Bristly) :
Setaria spp.
(revision date: 4/7/2021)
Family: Poaceae (Graminae)
Cycle: Annual
Plant Type: Grass
Use Integrated Pest Management (IPM) for successful weed management.
Biology
Three species of foxtails are found in the Pacific Northwest: green foxtail (S. viridis), yellow foxtail (Setaria pumila), and bristly foxtail (S. verticillata). Yellow foxtail grows in clumps reaching one to three feet. The leaves are smooth, 1/8 to 3/8 inch wide, and tapering to a point. The ligule (occurring at the point where the leaf blade joins the leaf sheath) is comprised of a fringe of hairs, with numerous long hairs at the leaf base. The leaf sheath is smooth, and auricles are absent. The seeds are borne at the tops of the stems in a densely packed, "hairy" seed head one to five inches long. The greenish to brown seeds are about 1/8 inch long. Green foxtail is similar to yellow foxtail, but is generally shorter in height, has rough leaf sheaths, shorter seed heads, smaller seeds, and lacks the long hairs at the leaf bases. Bristly foxtail resembles green and yellow foxtails, but the seed heads are bristly rather than hairy, causing them to cling to clothing and animals.
Habitat
Foxtails are weeds of cultivated areas, roadsides, and waste areas. They can be a serious problem in some crops.
Management Options
Non-Chemical Management
None recommended
Select non-chemical management options as your first choice!
Chemical Management
IMPORTANT:
Visit Home and Garden Fact Sheets for more information on using pesticides
Preemergent herbicides are very effective in controlling foxtails. In areas where annual grasses are consistent problems, apply in spring when soil temperatures reach 50 to 55 degrees F. Glyphosate products should be used as spot treatments only! NOTE: Some ingredients listed here are only available in combination. Read the label carefully on combination products to make sure the product is suitable for your specific situation.
Landscape areas
glyphosate
oryzalin
trifluralin
sethoxydim
products containing diquat
Turf areas
Bare ground areas
glyphosate
products containing diquat
Images
+ Show larger images
Caption: Yellow foxtail
Photo by: D.G. Swan
Caption: Seedheads: green foxtail at left, yellow foxtail at right
Photo by: D.G. Swan
Caption: Green foxtail
Photo by: R. Parker