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Summary

Short-awn foxtail has edible grains, but there is little record of human use. While technically safe, the tiny seed size and sparse occurrence make it a poor food resource compared to other grasses. It is more valuable for livestock than for foragers.

Physical Characteristics

Alopecurus aequalis is a ANNUAL/PERENNIAL growing to 0.3 m (1ft). It is in flower from May to June. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Wind.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist or wet soil.

UK Hardiness Map US Hardiness Map

Synonyms

A. fulvus.

Plant Habitats

Meadow; Bog Garden;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Seed
Edible Uses:

Seed - cooked. It can be used whole like millet, but is more usually ground into a flour and used with other cereals in making bread etc. The seed is small and fiddly, it is very much a famine food[177, K]. The grains are edible, though historical use by Native Americans is not well documented [2-3]. Like other wild grasses, the seeds can be collected, parched, ground into meal, or boiled into porridge. However, the seeds are very small, and harvesting in meaningful quantities is labor-intensive. Short-awn foxtail thrives in wet soils, often along the edges of lakes, and produces seeds from late summer into autumn. The plant is more notable as a forage grass for grazing animals than as a human food source [2-3].

References More on Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Antiphlogistic Depurative Diuretic

The whole plant is antiphlogistic, depurative and diuretic[147]. It is used in the treatment of oedema, chickenpox and snakebites[147].

References More on Medicinal Uses

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Other Uses

None known

Special Uses

References More on Other Uses

Cultivation details

See the plants native habitat for ideas on its cultivation needs. This species is a weed of cultivated cereals and can harbour pests common to cultivated crops.

References Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information

Temperature Converter

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Plant Propagation

Seed - we have no details for this species but suggest sowing the seed in situ in April and only just covering it.

Other Names

If available other names are mentioned here

Alopecurus aequalis (Short-awn or Orange Foxtail)

Native Range

TEMPERATE ASIA: Afghanistan, Turkey, Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia (Ciscaucasia), Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russian Federation (Dagestan), Russian Federation-Western Siberia (Western Siberia), Russian Federation-Eastern Siberia (Eastern Siberia), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Mongolia, Russian Federation-Far East (Far East), China (north), Japan, Korea, South, Korea, North TROPICAL ASIA: Pakistan (north) NORTHERN AMERICA: Canada (Yukon, Québec, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba), Greenland, United States (Alaska, Connecticut, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, California (n. & w.), Nevada, Utah) EUROPE: Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Russian Federation (European part), Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russian Federation (Astrakhan, Saratov, Volgogradskaja oblast), Ukraine (incl. Krym), Bulgaria, Greece, Croatia, Italy, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, France, Portugal AFRICA: Algeria, Morocco

Weed Potential

Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section. Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it's worth checking.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status :

Related Plants

Latin Name	Common Name	Habit	Height	Hardiness	Growth	Soil	Shade	Moisture	Edible	Medicinal	Other

Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.

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Alopecurus aequalis - Sobol.