Vol. 15—1961 - NorthEastern Weed Science Society

350.
PROGRESSREPORTON A STUDYOF THEGERMINATION ANDGROVITH
OF YELIDWFOXTAIL(SETARIAGLAUCA(,1.) !m@!.)l
Robert A. Peters
and Harlan C. Yotrom
2
Introduction
Yellow foxtail is one of the most prevalent annual grasses in the
Eastern United States. This species listed by Fernald3 as Setaria gla.u£ii
(L.) Bgauv. is listed more commonly in older references as Setaria lutescens.
An ubiquitous warm season grass, foxtail is most frequently associated with
annual crops or ,'lith the first year of growth in perennial crops such as
forages where the soil has been recently disturbed. While it has long
presented a weed ryroblem, relatively little is mown as to the germination
and growth characteristics of yellow foxtail. More soecific information on
the biological characteristics of this species is needed as a basis for an .
intelligent approach to both cultural and che~cal control.
The foxtail investigation discussed in this paper was made at the
Agronomy Research Farm of the University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut.
The following is a progress report of long term study of the growth characteristics
of yellow foxtail being carried out as T)art of the Regional NE-42
Cooperative Weed Control Project4.
Procedure
...­
Seed for the germination study was collected in the field in the
fa.ll of 1958 and ·1959 at the time that shattering nOI'!,Jally occurs. Periodic
attempts were made following harvest to induce -germination thru alterinl7 the
enviromnent or thru treatment of the seed bv chemical or non-chemical means.
Germination '>illS measured in triplicate' for each treatment by placing 50 seeds
per petri dish in a germinator at SOOF•.
The gemination experiments were carried out primarily in the la1x>ratory.
The progressive developnent of foxtail plants was followed both in the greenhouse
and in the field from the time of germination until seed heads were
produced.
The density of volunteer stands of vellow foxtail varies widely
depending "both on the abundance of seedlings and on the degree of control if
attempted. Starting with a high density volunteer stand, periodic measurements
.
1 Contribution"from the Storrs (Conn.) Agricultural Experiment Station,
Storrs, Conn. ..
2 Associate AgrOnomist and Research Assistant, respectively.
3 Fernald; M. L. Gray's Nnual g,t Botany. Eighth Edition.. American Boek"
Company, New York. 1950. .
4 Weed Life Cycles, Soil Microorganisms and Light as Factors in the Control
of Weeds in the· Northeast.
•