Setaria faberi

Chinese foxtail, Chinese Foxtail

Family: Poaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

Chinese foxtail is a naturalized annual grass found in northern Sierra Nevada foothills, deltaic Great Valley, Central Coast, and Southern Coast regions in disturbed areas at elevations below 100 meters. Flowering from June to November, this plant produces pale green to greenish-yellow inflorescences in dense, bristly clusters 7 to 18 centimeters long. Growing with upright stems 10 to 200 centimeters tall that are soft and hairy, it spreads quickly in agricultural and waste areas. Its leaves are long and narrow, 15 to 30 centimeters in length, with soft hairs on the upper surface and prominent leaf sheaths 6 to 11 centimeters long. The plant produces small spikelets 2.5 to 3 millimeters long with distinctive bristles that aid in seed dispersal.

Habitat: Disturbed areas

Bloom period: Jun-Nov

Elevation: < 100 m

Bioregions: n SNF, deltaic GV, CCo, SCo

California counties: Placer, Los Angeles, Solano, Sonoma, Santa Cruz

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.