Large Crabgrass
Digitaria sanguinalis · Warm-season, Annual, C4
AI-generated identification · may be incorrect
Grass Category
Invasive/Weed Grass
Hardiness Zones
USDA Hardiness Zones 3-10, acts strictly as a summer annual completing its life cycle in one season and dying with the first heavy frost.
Grass Family
Poaceae, subfamily Panicoideae
Variety / Cultivar
Wild type
About This Grass
A coarse, light green to yellow-green annual grass that forms sprawling clumps. Unmowed heights can reach up to 1-2 feet, but it typically hugs the ground when mowed. The texture is coarse with prominent spreading stems that root at the lower nodes. Seed heads consist of 3 to 13 finger-like racemes arranged digitately at the top of the stem.
Blade Characteristics
Blades are medium to coarse in width (4-10 mm), flat, with a pointed tip and prominent central vein. Color is light green to grayish-green. Vernation is rolled in the bud. Ligule is a membranous structure, and auricles are absent.
Root System
Shallow, fibrous root system with stolons that root at the nodes when in contact with moist soil. Rapid establishment speed from seed in the spring. Forms loose patches rather than a dense turf sod.
Growing Information
Origin Region
Europe and temperate Asia, now distributed globally in temperate and tropical regions
Growth Habit
Stoloniferous and spreading, rooting at the nodes, forming low-growing, mat-like patches
Sunlight & Water Needs
Requires full sun and open areas with poor competition. Moderate to high water needs for germination, but highly drought-tolerant once established by entering a semi-dormant state. Thrives in compacted, well-drained soils with a wide pH range.
Mowing & Maintenance
Hard to control by mowing alone due to its low-growing prostrate habit. Responds well to frequent low mowing by spreading horizontally. Requires pre-emergent herbicides, hand-pulling, or post-emergent selective herbicides for control. High maintenance as a weed.
Special Characteristics
Exceptional ability to invade thin lawns, tolerate extreme heat, and adapt to poor, compacted soils. Very low wear tolerance compared to established turfgrasses, but excellent at quickly colonizing bare earth and resisting drought by going dormant.
Ecological Information
Introduced species in North America, often considered an invasive agricultural and turf weed. Provides minor food source for ground-feeding birds and small mammals. Excellent at rapid soil stabilization on disturbed bare soil due to its aggressive spreading stolons.