Stout, introduced, weedy annual from 1 1/2 – 4 1/2 feet tall with erect or leaning stems. Leaves are broad (up to 1/2 inch) and may feel velvety because of the soft, white hairs that usually cover the upper surface (E). They are best seen when viewed tangentially (F). The stem is smooth, but leaf sheath margins have fine hairs. The cylindrical 1-8 inch flower clusters usually nod from the base. They consist of many densely packed spikelets each equipped with several bristles (D) responsible for its “foxtail-like” look.
Roadsides, disturbed sites, waste ground, cultivated fields, gardens. Giant Foxtail is uncommon at Fontenelle Forest along the margins of the Camp Gifford Road parking lot. At Neale Woods it is uncommon on the edges of the Jonas Center parking lot and in disturbed prairie sites. Flowering occurs from July to October.
The flower spike of Yellow Foxtail (Setaria pumila) is erect and more cylindrical than Giant Foxtail, and bristles are yellow or orange. Green Foxtail (Setaria viridis) does not have hairs on the upper surface of the leaf and the flower spike is usually more gently arched or just droops a bit at the tip. Canada Wild Rye (Elymus canadensis) and Hairy Wild Rye (Elymus villosus) also have bristly, nodding seed heads, but the awns are longer and Canada Wild Rye awns are bent and twisted. Both have elongated “oat-like” seeds unlike the rounded foxtail seeds.
There are a number of other common names for Giant Foxtail including Chinese Foxtail, Chinese Millet, Nodding Foxtail, Giant Bristlegrass, and Pigeongrass.
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