Quackgrass is a common weed of agronomic crops, turfgrass, lawns, nurseries, and landscapes that may be found in the northern United States from North Carolina to California. Seedlings have auricles but are often difficult to see on very young seedlings. Leaf sheaths are rounded and may have short hairs but hairs typically can be found only near the base of the plant.
Stems often bend out and up from the base of the plant.
Leaves may or may not have hairs on the upper surfaces, but lower leaf surfaces are without hairs. Leaves have membranous ligules that are less than 1 mm long and also have narrow auricles that clasp the sheath. Rhizomes and a fibrous root system. Seedhead a long, narrow spike consisting of many individual spikelets arranged in 2 rows along the stem. Spikes range from 2 to 8 inches in length while individual spikelets are approximately 11 to 18 mm long with awns.