Stem

0.5-2 ft. tall; slender; round in cross-section

Leaves

4-12 in. long, less than 0.12 in. wide; sometimes covered with short hairs; collar region usually has long hairs, auricles and a membranous ligule

Flower

Seedhead is a spike, 0.5-2 in. long; awns are stiff, straight or twisted, barbed and up to 3 in. long; spikes often remain intact on dry plants through winter

Root

Fibrous

Other

Grows best on clay soils; primarily infests rangeland; known to occur in Churchill, Elko, Humboldt, Lyon, Pershing, and Washoe counties
Annual; reproduces by seed; matures 2-4 weeks later than other annual grasses
Unpalatable to grazing animals due to high levels of silica in the foliage and long, stiff awns

Control

Tillage, mowing or grazing prior to seed set can reduce stands; burning has had mixed results; most effective with a hot, slow fire prior to seed maturity but after other species have dried-down; burning can also be used to reduce the thatch layer, which can increase the performance of soil-applied herbicides
Apply imazapic, indaziflam, or sulfometuron preemergence or to small, actively growing plants; glyphosate to actively growing plants

Blecker, L., Creech, E., Dick, J., Gephart, S., Hefner, M., Kratsch, H., Moe, A., Schultz, B. 2020, Nevada Noxious Weed Field Guide – Medusahead, Extension, University of Nevada, Reno, Field Guide

Extension Associated Contacts

Heidi Kratsch

Also of Interest:


Needs Assessment for Noxious Weeds in Churchill County: Part 2 of 5 - Problems of and Obstacles to Weed Management This publication discusses the results from a needs assessment conducted by the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension and looks at the problems and obstacles associated with weed management. Powell, P., Davison, J., Schultz, B., Creech, E., and Singletary, L. 2011, University of Nevada Extension, FS-2011-73
Needs Assessment for Noxious Weeds in Churchill County: Part 3 of 5 - Spread, Detection and Prevention of Weeds This publication discusses the results from a needs assessment conducted by the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension to discuss the spread, detection and prevention of weeds. Davison, J., Powell, P., Schultz, B., Creech, E., and Singletary, L. 2011, University of Nevada Extension, FS-2011-74

Associated Programs

Garden plant and pest sprayers image by Olga Seifutdinova from Getty Images

Integrated Pest Management

Integrated Pest Management is a strategy that reduces pests to tolerable levels with lower costs for the pest manager or home gardener and minimal effect on the environment. The IPM program at the University of Nevada, Reno focuses on identification and public education with resources for the community including classes, Spanish language web pages and a UNR pest directory.

Master Gardeners of Nevada

Program trains local gardeners to provide research-based horticulture information to Nevadans.

Weed Warriors Invasive Weed Training

The Nevada Noxious Weed Education Program, Weed Warriors program tackles the growing problem of spreading noxious and nuisance weeds on public and private land.

Nevada Noxious Weed Field Guide – Medusahead