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| ## Creeping foxtail {#creeping-foxtail .Title-Header}                 |
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| *Alopecurus arundinaceus* Poir.                                       |
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| Plant Symbol = ALAR                                                   |
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*Contributed by: USDA NRCS Idaho State Office*

![](media/image2.jpeg){width="2.7255905511811025in"
height="3.972834645669291in"}![](media/image3.jpeg){width="0.9574803149606299in"
height="1.5570866141732282in"}

Photo: Lars Hedenäs

> Photo: Swedish Museum of Natural History

**Alternate Names**

Creeping meadow foxtail, *Alopecurus ventricosus*

**Uses**

*Grazing/livestock/pasture*: Creeping foxtail is very well suited for
pastureland or hayland. Because it does not undergo dormancy during the
summer, creeping foxtail produces high yields of palatable forage season
long. Plants break winter dormancy early in spring, and leaves remain
green and palatable even during the hottest months. Studies indicate
that creeping foxtail yields equal or exceed those of other comparable
grasses.

Creeping foxtail is palatable to all classes of livestock. Cattle show
preference to creeping foxtail over other widely employed pasture
grasses. In separate studies, cattle preferred creeping foxtail to
smooth brome (*Bromus inermis*), reed canarygrass (*Phalaris
arundinaceus*) and tall wheatgrass (*Thinopyrum ponticum*). In another
study, cattle preferred straw from seed production fields of creeping
foxtail over thickspike wheatgrass (*Elymus lanceolatus*), western
wheatgrass *(Pascopyrum smithii*), basin wildrye (*Leymus cinereus*) and
others. It can be seeded in pure stands or with a legume.

This species produces numerous aggressive underground rhizomes. These
contribute to long-lived stands and an ability to recover quickly from
grazing.

*Filter fields*: Because of creeping foxtail's tolerance to high levels
of fertilizer, particularly nitrogen and water, it can be used in filter
fields for liquid waste disposal. It can also be used in a variety of
other water settings including sewage treatment, food processing and
livestock waste removal programs. With suitable moisture, creeping
foxtail can also be used as an excellent silt trap. This species is
known to tolerate up to six inches of silt per single deposition.

*Erosion control*: Creeping foxtail's vigorous rhizome production (up to
120 cm crown diameter/year) and water tolerance make it well suited to
erosion control and stream bank stabilization. Creeping foxtail can
tolerate both high water levels and periods of drought, it can be used
on earthen dams where water levels fluctuate. It survives in a broad
range of pH, making it suitable for mine spoils, saline seeps (tolerant
to ECs of 12) bogs and acidic roadways.

*Wildlife*: All manner of wildlife benefit from the forage and cover
provided by creeping foxtail. Elk and deer eat the succulent forage in
the spring and fall. The tender spring growth also provides forage for
geese and other waterfowl. Numerous species of birds use the dense
growth for cover and nesting habitat. Creeping foxtail has been used for
plantings around ponds, lakes, grassed waterways and other waterways.

**Legal Status**

Consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural
Resources for status (e.g. threatened or endangered species, state
noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

**Weediness**

In addition to aggressive rhizomes, creeping foxtail proliferates by
windborne and waterborne seeds. Rapid reproduction can be useful in
repairing damaged sites; however, creeping foxtail's ability to spread
quickly may create management problems in canals, irrigation ditches and
other waterways.

Please consult with your local NRCS Field Office, Cooperative Extension
Service office, or state natural resource or agriculture department
regarding this species' status and use. Weed information is also
available from the PLANTS Web site.

**Description**

*General*: Grass Family (Poaceae). Creeping foxtail is a large,
long-lived, rhizomatous, sod-forming, perennial grass introduced from
Eurasia.

Culms are tall (5 to 12 dm) and stout (\~8 mm). Cauline leaves are
numerous, flat and green, mostly 6 to 8 mm (12), glabrous above and
scabrous beneath. The membranous ligule is 1 to 5 mm long and is rounded
to acute.

The inflorescence is a spike-like, cylindrical panicle, typically 4 to
10 cm long and around 8 mm thick, turning purplish or black with
maturity. It has a very similar appearance to the seedheads of timothy,
but creeping foxtail heads turn the dark colors described above with
maturity and Timothy seedheads turn a brownish -- buff color.

Individual spikelets are single flowered and urn-shaped (4 to 5 mm long,
1 to 1.5 mm wide). The glumes are fused basally and are strongly keeled
with a ciliate margin, the hairs 1 to 2 mm. Lemmas are typically shorter
than the glumes and may bear a straight to geniculate awn (1 to 2 mm)
arising from below to slightly above mid-length. Anthers are usually
purple but are occasionally yellow or orange.

Anthesis occurs early in the season. Seed maturation begins at the top
of the inflorescence and proceeds downward. Spikelets disarticulate
below the glumes with the spikelet falling as a single unit.

Creeping foxtail should not be confused with other grass species that
share the common name foxtail. Creeping foxtail is a close relative of
meadow foxtail (*Alopecurus pratensis*) and can be distinguished by
having broader leaves (8-12 mm vs. 4-8 mm) and a dark purplish
inflorescence. There are also many weedy species that bear the name
foxtail, i.e. foxtail barley (*Hordeum jubatum*) and green foxtail
(*Setaria viridis*). These may occupy the same habitats as creeping
foxtail, but bear little or no resemblance.

*Distribution*: This species is native to the colder regions of Europe
and Asia. It ranges naturally from the British Isles in the west to
Siberia in the east going as far south as Turkey and Italy and possibly
China.

Records indicate that creeping foxtail was introduced into the United
States around the end of the 19^th^ century. At the time, it was little
used by farmers who lacked the specialized equipment to plant and
harvest its small fluffy seeds. With the advent of more advanced
machinery in the 1930's and 40's, it became more widely used in forage
practices.

Presently, it is most commonly utilized throughout the Pacific
Northwest, Intermountain West, Northern Great Plain States and western
Canada. It is projected that creeping foxtail could be used as far east
as the New England states.

For more information on distribution, please consult the plant profile
page for this species on the PLANTS Website.

**Adaptation**

Creeping foxtail is adapted to cold temperatures and wet conditions. It
is extremely winter hardy. It can establish and survive in areas where
frost-free periods average less than 30 days annually. Studies indicate
creeping foxtail outperforms smooth brome on flooded permafrost soils in
Alaska. It also grows well at a broad range of elevations (500-9000 ft),
but grows best on middle to high elevation wet to semi-wet sites.

This species is well adapted to areas of high moisture typically too wet
for good production of most forage grasses, i.e. brome (*Bromus*
species) and orchardgrass (*Dactylis glomerata*) and is a superior
forage to other semi-wetland grasses, such as tall fescue and other
wetland grasses, such as reed canarygrass, meadow foxtail and timothy.
It usually occurs in areas receiving more than 18 inches of
precipitation. It also grows readily along margins of ponds, lakes,
bogs, ditches and in mountain meadows. It can withstand periodic
flooding of 60 to 90 cm for up to 45 days. Some varieties are also
somewhat drought tolerant, being able to survive in areas with widely
fluctuating water levels and drought during later summer periods.

Creeping foxtail does well in a broad spectrum of soils provided there
is sufficient available water. It can grow in sand, clay, peat and muck.
It is moderately salt tolerant (up to 12 millimhos/cm) and tolerates
both moderately acidic soils (pH 5.6 to 6.0) and slightly alkaline soils
(pH 7.9 to 8.4).

**Establishment**

Creeping foxtail establishment techniques are similar to those for other
forage grasses. For best results the seedbed should be weed free, moist
and firmly packed. Follow seeding with a light harrowing or packing
operation. Optimum seeding depth is 1/8 to 1/4 inch and no deeper than ½
inch.

Timing depends almost entirely on available moisture. Irrigated fields
can be seeded in early to mid spring or late summer avoiding the hot mid
summer period. Irrigated fall seedings can be successful as late as
early to mid-September allowing for enough time (6 to 8 weeks) for
seedling establishment before freezing temperatures. Where precipitation
is required, seed when soil is moist but firm enough or frozen to
support seeding equipment. Late fall dormant seedings (after October
20^th^ in most areas), winter and very early spring seedings are most
effective under non-irrigated conditions where seeds are not allowed to
germinate until spring.

This species produces very light seed units (750,000 seeds/lb) which
allow for low relative seeding rates for adequate stand establishment.
It is recommended that a minimum seeding rate of 3 to 4 lb/acre is used
for ease of handling and uniform distribution through seeding equipment
. This rate provides 51 to 68 seed/ft^2^.

It is popular to dilute the seed with inert materials, i.e. rice hulls,
cracked corn or other cracked grains. For rice hulls, cracked wheat or
cracked barley, dilute 3-4 lb/acre seed with 2 bushel/acre dilutor, and
set the drill to seed the equivalent of 2 bushels of barley per acre.
For cracked corn reduce dilutor to 1 bushel/ acre.

When seeding with a legume, it is recommended that one plant in
alternate rows. Studies conducted with 'Lutana' cicer milkvetch
(*Astragalus cicer*) and 'Eski' sainfoin (*Onobrychis viciaefolia*)
showed increases in yield over a four-year period when planted in
alternate rows.

**Management**

Young seedlings are small and weak. Growth is slow for the first 4 to 6
weeks even under irrigated conditions. Rhizomes can emerge as early as 8
weeks. With the emergence of rhizomes, growth is rapid. With adequate
soil moisture inflorescences may develop in mid to late summer, but
first year plants typically do not produce seedheads, or when they do,
there is not enough seed for a profitable harvest.

Under non-irrigated conditions, it is not uncommon to have difficulty
determining stand establishment the first growing season. Stand success
should not be determined until the second or third growing season under
non-irrigated conditions.

Applications of commercial fertilizer are not required during the
establishment period; however, creeping foxtail responds very favorably
to applications of 50 to 60 lb/acre actual nitrogen once established.
Creeping foxtail plants show little response to applications of
potassium, phosphates and secondary elements.

When planted with a legume, adjust fertilizer rates according to
desires: For more grass production increase nitrogen, for more legume
production increase phosphorus and potassium.

Weeds can be controlled using standard herbicide practices, although
weeds should cause few problems with adequate fertilizer.

**Pests and Potential Problems**

Creeping foxtail has historically shown little damage from insects and
other diseases; however, in some years leaf spot diseases have been
recorded as a problem in Canada.

**Seed and Plant** **Production**

Seed production practices for creeping foxtail are more involved and
difficult than those of most other forage grasses. Harvest timing is
critical for a good yield, and seed cleaning requires more time and
equipment than for most other grass species.

Stands should be planted in wide-spaced 36 to 48 inch rows, but rhizomes
cause sod binding and row closing. This can be overcome by applying high
levels of nitrogen and aggressive cultivation to maintain desired row
culture.

During establishment, apply enough phosphorus for three years according
to forage production rate. No nitrogen should be added until seedlings
are established, or drill 50 lb/acre of 11-48-0 with the seed. Once
seedlings are established apply 30 lb/acre N for dryland or 60 to 80
lb/acre N for irrigated fields.

Nitrogen application in the fall on established fields positively
influences inflorescence size and number. Apply 100 to 150 lb/acre N
each year. Studies have shown inflorescence production rose as nitrogen
levels were increased up to 100 lb/acre actual N. After 150 lb/acre
production tapered off as plants used more nitrogen for foliage than
seed production. Seed yields with 100 lb/acre were as high as 570
lb/acre while yields of 350 lb/acre were achieved when no nitrogen was
applied.

During establishment, enough water should be applied to get stands
started. The soil surface should be kept moist to avoid crusting. In
early September bring soil moisture up to field capacity. Established
fields should be irrigated in spring through the boot stage. Soil
moisture should be kept above 50% field capacity. Good soil moisture is
necessary during the early phase of seed development to prevent moisture
stress, but do not irrigate during flowering or seed ripening. After
harvest irrigate to field capacity to promote vegetative production.

Since seed maturation is temperature dependent, different regions will
be harvested at different times of year. For proper timing of harvest,
attention must be paid to three indicators. (1) 75 percent or more of
the seeds should be black. (2) 50 percent of the inflorescences have
begun to shatter at the tip. (3) 75 percent of the stems are yellow up
to 3 to 4 inches directly below the inflorescence. These three events
often occur quickly over a three day period.

Plants are typically windrowed, dried (3 to 5 days) and picked up by a
combine. Seed heads shatter readily. Hand harvested seeds yielded over
500 lb/acre while machine harvested fields yielded as little as 180
lb/acre. It is recommended that you slow the reel speed of both the
windrower and combine to equal to or slightly higher than ground speed.
It is also recommended to make these adjustments to the combine: (1)
slow ground speed to allow more separating time; (2) shut off air flow
by sealing the fan housing or inactivating the fan; (3) remove screens
following the sieves; (4) adjust concave spacing to ¼ inch; (5) adjust
cylinder speed to approximately 3500 ft/min. (750 to 850 rpm).

An alternative harvesting method employed by the NRCS Bismarck Plant
Materials Center and others is the use of a seed stripper. For best
results ground speed should be 1.5 to 2 mph. Tachometer speed can be
from 1100 to 1800 rpm, and the brush speed should be around 425 rpm.

Typical production is 300 pounds per acre irrigated and 150 pounds per
acre non-irrigated. Non-irrigated seed production is not recommended
below 16 inches of annual precipitation.

Seeds should be dried prior to storage at temperatures not over 104º F
(40º C). Store seed in bins at 12% moisture content or sacks (15%).

A barley debearder can be used to remove the fine hairs from the glume
keels and to remove stems and chaff. The debearder should be run at 500
rpm long enough to break down stems. Seeds can then be cleaned using a
#9 round hole in the top screen, 1/18" x ¼" slotted middle screen and a
6 x 36 wire mesh bottom screen. The fan should be set to a slow, light
wind speed (100 to 150 rpm).

**Cultivars, Improved and Selected Materials (and area of origin)**

Foundation seed is available through the appropriate state Crop
Improvement Association or commercial sources to grow certified seed.

**'Garrison'** creeping foxtail (*Alopecurus arundinaceus*) was named
and released by the Natural Resources Conservation Service Plant
Materials Center in Bismarck, North Dakota in 1963. The original
collection was made in 1950 near Max, North Dakota where plants were
growing on the margins of potholes. 'Garrison' is adapted to cold
temperature regions where there is abundant water. It is especially well
suited to higher elevation areas that receive 18 inches or more
precipitation annually or along the margins of ponds, lakes, ditches and
other waterways. It provides excellent forage for cattle and other
classes of livestock by producing highly palatable leaves throughout the
growing season. 'Garrison' has a high moisture tolerance and produces
vigorous rhizomes making it an excellent choice for controlling
streambank and shoreline erosion. Certified seed is available.

Breeder and Foundation seed is maintained by the Bridger, Montana PMC.

**'Retain'** creeping foxtail (*Alopecurus arundinaceus*) was selected
by the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station and released in
1979. This is a five-clone synthetic single plant selection from
'Garrison.' 'Retain' is very similar to 'Garrison,' but this cultivar
retains seed on the panicle making it possible to harvest with a direct
cut combine. Like 'Garrison,' it is well adapted to wet areas and is
flood tolerant. It is highly palatable to livestock. It matures early,
heading in mid-May.

Breeder and foundation seed are maintained by South Dakota State
University. Contact for availability.

**Control**

Contact your local agricultural extension specialist or county weed
specialist to determine the best control methods in your area and how to
use it safely.

**References**

Alderson, J. & W. C. Sharp 1994. *Grass varieties in the United States.*
Agriculture Handbook No. 170. USDA, SCS, Washington, DC.

Cornforth, B. L. St. John & D. G. Ogle. 2001. Seed production standards
for conservation plants in the intermountain west. USDA-NRCS, Boise, ID.
ID-TN 14, Dec. 2001. 15p.

Hitchcock, A. S. 1935. *Manual of the grasses of the United States*.
USDA, Washington DC.

Ogle, D. G. 1994. Technical Note 9: *Salt tolerance of plants*.
USDA-NRCS, Boise, ID. ID-TN 9, Oct. 1994. 6p.

Ogle, D. G., L. St. John, M. Stannard & L. Holzworth. 2003. Technical
Note 24: Grass, grass-like, forb, legume, and woody species for the
intermountain west. USDA-NRCS, Boise, ID. ID-TN 24, Jan. 2003. 41p.

Smith, R., D. Cattani, D. Feindel, R. Haas, D. Tober, L. Holzworth, M.
Majerus, D. Hall & K. Borcher. Native Grass Seed Production Manual
(Including Selected Forbs). USDA-NRCS, Ducks Unlimited Canada, the
Manitoba Forage Seed Association and the University of Manitoba.

USDA, Soil Conservation Service 1978. '*Garrison' Creeping Foxtail*.
SCS-TP-156.

USDA, Soil Conservation Service. 1990. Technical Note 7:
*Grass-legume-forb seed dilution with rice hulls*. USDA-SCS, Boise, ID.
ID-TN 7, Oct. 1990. 5p.

USDA, NRCS. 2004. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5
[(http://plants.usda.gov)](http://plants.usda.gov/). [National Plant
Data Center](http://npdc.usda.gov/npdc/index.html), Baton Rouge, LA
70874-4490 USA.

Welsh, S. L., N. D. Atwood, S. Goodrich & L. C. Higgins. 1993. *A Utah
Flora*. Brigham Young University Press, Provo, Utah.

##### 

Images courtesy of "Den Virtuella Floran" used by permission of the
Swedish Museum of Natural History.

##### Prepared By: 

*Derek J. Tilley,* Range Conservationist (Plants)

USDA NRCS Plant Materials Center, Aberdeen, Idaho

*Dan Ogle*, Plant Materials Specialist

USDA NRCS Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho

*Loren St. John*, Manager

USDA NRCS Plant Materials Center, Aberdeen, Idaho

Wayne Duckwitz, Manager

USDA NRCS Plant Materials Center, Bismarck, North Dakota

Larry Holzworth, Plant Materials Specialist

USDA NRCS Montana State Office, Bozeman, Montana

Mark Majerus, Manager

USDA NRCS Plant Materials Center, Bridger, Montana

Dwight Tober, Plant Materials Specialist

USDA NRCS North Dakota State Office, Bismarck, North Dakota

##### Species Coordinator: 

*Larry Holzworth*, Plant Materials Specialist

USDA-NRCS, Montana State Office, Bozeman, Montana

Edited: 03Mar04 djt; 31Mar04 dgo; 7Apr04 lkh; 7Apr04 dat; 7Apr04 wld;
7Apr04 mem; 30may06jsp

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your
local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS
Web site\<[http://plants.usda.gov](http://plants.usda.gov/)\> or the
Plant Materials Program Web site
\<[http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov](http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov/)\>

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