Crabgrass
Digitaria sanguinalis · Warm-season, Annual, C4
Grass Family
Poaceae, subfamily Panicoideae, tribe Paniceae
Grass Category
Invasive/Weed Grass
Variety / Cultivar
Wild type (smooth crabgrass Digitaria ischaemum or large crabgrass Digitaria sanguinalis)
Hardiness Zones
USDA Hardiness Zones 3 through 10, strictly annual dying with the first frost
About This Grass
Forms coarse, light green to yellow-green patches that sprawl low to the ground. Unmowed height can reach 12 to 24 inches with finger-like seed heads. Texture is coarse, highly visible as a weed in finer turfgrasses
Blade Characteristics
Coarse blades greater than 4mm wide, flat, pointed tips, light yellow-green color, rolled in the bud vernation, membranous ligule, distinct hairy sheaths and blades
Root System
Shallow, fibrous root system with stolons that root at the lower nodes; fast establishment from seed, poor drought tolerance in extreme heat without water, aggressive competitor
Growing Information
Origin Region
Europe and native to Eurasia/Africa; widely naturalized globally in temperate and tropical regions
Growth Habit
Stoloniferous and spreading prostrate growth habit, rooting at the nodes, forming wide, loose clumps
Sunlight & Water Needs
Full sun, requires high light and moisture for germination, moderate to high water needs during growing season, poor shade tolerance, thrives in compacted soils with low fertility
Mowing & Maintenance
Can survive low mowing by spreading horizontally, highly persistent, requires pre-emergent herbicide application in early spring for effective control, high maintenance weed management level
Special Characteristics
Extremely high seed production, poor wear tolerance compared to established turf, excellent at invading thin lawns, high tolerance for compacted and poor soils
Ecological Information
Introduced invasive weed in lawns, provides minor seed source for ground-feeding birds, often outcompetes desirable turfgrass in stressed or thin turf areas