Smooth Crabgrass
Digitaria ischaemum (Schreb.) Schreb. ex Muhl.
Poaceae (Grass Family)
seedlings ▲
young plants ▲▼
mature plants ▲▼
inflorescence ▲
collar and ligule regions ▲▼
Smooth Crabgrass:
· warm-season, annual grass with spreading growth habit, sometimes rooting at nodes; 2-18" high; panicle inflorescence with 5 -10 branches in somewhat digitate panicle arrangement, with 2-6 panicle branches, 1-3.5” long
· stems often growing in zig-zag habit along the ground
· has, at most, only a few hairs on leaf blades near collar region, and no hairs on sheath, compared to large crabgrass or southern crabgrass
· leaf midvein is not prominent, if sheath or stem has any color besides green, is often more purplish than reddish
· can survive and reproduce under close mowing situations
· requires light to germinate; may germinate over long periods in southern Missouri
· spreads over adjacent plants, shading them and weakening them