Seed from lower spikelets germinates more slowly and can remain dormant for longer periods. Light appears to inhibit germination and induce dormancy of seeds. Burs on the soil surface can have a prolonged germination period of more than 3 years, but seedlings seldom establish. Most seed of buried burs germinates within 2 years. Plants emerging early in a season can produce more than 1,000 burs.
Some seed is viable by the time flower spikes become visible.
Sandburs compete poorly with dense vegetation and rarely become established in well-managed pastures. Disturbances that bury burs and remove existing vegetation stimulate germination and enhance seedling establishment. However, repeated cultivation before burs develop reduces the seed bank and can eventually eliminate an infestation. Under mowing regimes, plants grow low to the ground and can still produce burs. Bufflegrass is a perennial with rhizomes and sometimes stolons.