Goosegrass

Goosegrass

Weed Flora of Mississippi

Family: Poaceae (grass family)

Genus: Eleusine      Species: indica  

History: Goosegrass is native to Eurasia. It can be found in agronomic crops, pastures, orchards, roadsides and waste areas. Goosegrass has some history of developing resistance to herbicides. In the Midsouth, some biotypes are resistant to the dinitroaniline herbicides like Treflan and Prowl. Also known as: white crabgrass, bullgrass, crowfootgrass, crowsfoot grass, Indian goosegrass, wiregrass and silver crabgrass.

Life Cycle: Summer annual

Special Characteristics: It has semi-prostrate growth habits. The seedling is folded in the bud, and its first leaf opens parallel to the ground. The collar region is broad, white, and lightly hairy, lacks auricles. Goosegrass has a long period of emergence throughout the Southeast, and late emerging plants of this fast-growing weed can compete with the crop and build the seed bank. However, its germination is strongly promoted by tillage.

Roots: Fibrous

Stem: Mature plants form a rosette, with sometimes erect, but typically prostrate, stems. Stems have branches and nodes; they can reach 28 inches (70 cm) in height.

Leaves: Blades are wide, light green, smooth, and distinctly veined. Leaf sheaths are smooth and light green to white at the base. It has a small (less than 0.04-inch long), membranous, uneven, centrally notched ligule. Sheaths are smooth, light green to white at the base, and hairy near the collar region. Ligules and collar regions are similar to those of seedlings.

Flower: Flowers are 0.1 to 0.3 inch (0.25 to 0.8 cm) long; each contains one dark brown, 0.04 to 0.07 inch (0.1 to 0.18 cm) long seed. Flowers bloom from July through October. Flowers cluster along stiff spikes. Usually, two to six spikes radiate out at the end of the flowering stem (although one to twelve spikes may occur). Sometimes one or two spikes are attached below the terminal cluster.

 Seeds / Fruit: Seed enclosed in white to light tan chaff. Like all grasses, the apparent seed is covered by a thin, tight layer of fruit tissue. The fruits are tiny, reddish brown, one seeded, and enclosed in a thin covering.

Interference: Goosegrass is a major agricultural problem, especially in the southeastern U.S. because it’s a highly competitive annual weed causing significant yield loss (25 to 90%) in crops like cotton, peanut, soybean, and rice. It competes with crops for water, nutrients, and light. It is hard to control due to developing herbicide resistance (like glyphosate resistance).