Yellow Foxtail

Ecological Considerations:

Setaria pumila is a summer annual grass that grows about 1 – 3 feet high.  Its mostly hairless stems range from green to purple-tinged in color. The inflorescence is a stiff, cylindrical bundle of spikelets 2 to 15 centimeters long with short, blunt bristles. The panicle may appear yellow or yellow-tinged. The flowers have both male and female organs and are pollinated by wind.

Yellow Foxtail is adaptable, favoring full sun, moist to slightly dry conditions, and soil comprising loam, clay loam, or gravelly material. It will tolerate occasional mowing, although the surviving plants will be shorter and less erect. This grass can spread aggressively in disturbed areas and is often found along roadsides and in fields and pastures. Its seeds are an important food source for songbirds and upland game birds.

Yellow foxtail is considered a significant weed of crops and is classified as noxious or prohibited in many states. Historically it was cultivated in southern India for its starchy grains, eaten cooked or ground into flour and baked into roti. It also was gathered from the wild for food across tropical Africa and Asia.

Problems Posed by this Plant: Yellow Foxtail has not posed a problem to the ecosystems of Taylor Point, but it is adaptable and can spread aggressively.