3. Alopecurus pratensis L. (meadow foxtail)
Pl. 131
g–i; Map 533
Plants perennial. Flowering stems 40–90 cm long, erect or
ascending from often spreading bases, sometimes rooting at the lower nodes.
Leaf sheaths with the ligules 1–4 mm long. Leaf blades 4–25 cm long, 2–8 mm
wide. Inflorescences 2–10 cm long, 5–11 mm wide. Glumes 3.5–6.0 mm long,
sharply pointed at the tip, hairy, especially along the midnerve (keel) and
lateral nerves. Awn 5–10 mm long (extended 2–6 mm past the glumes), attached
toward the base of the lemma midnerve, twisted or bent abruptly near the
midpoint. Anthers 1.6–3.5 mm long. Fruits 1.5–3.0 mm long. 2n=28, 42.
May–August.
Introduced, uncommon in central Missouri (native of Europe,
Asia, introduced sporadically in North America, mostly in the northern U.S. and Canada). Pastures, fallow fields, roadsides, and moist, disturbed, usually grassy areas.
This species occasionally is planted in pastures as part of
cool‑season grass mixes for hay or forage. It reportedly causes hay fever
in some northeastern states, but is not common enough in Missouri to represent
much of a problem. Alopecurus pratensis bears a strong superficial
resemblance to Phleum pratense, with which it might be confused if
specimens are not examined closely.