Growth Characteristics: A weedy annual grass, 2 inches to 2 feet tall. Has a branched base and is typically rusty-red to purple at maturity. Seeds germinate in the late fall or early spring. Has rapid spring growth, with seeds maturing within 2 months of beginning growth. Reproduces from seeds. An aggressive weed

Seed head: Open, drooping, much branched panicle; spikelets contain 5 to 8 florets; glumes and lemmas pubescent or downy; lemmas narrow with awns 5/8 inch long or longer

Leaves: Pubescent blades and sheaths; blades flat, 1/8 inch to ¼ inch wide; leaves rolled in the bud; ligules 1/16 to 1/8 inch long, membranous, rounded to collar shaped, with long pointed teeth; auricles absent.

Cheatgrass is widely adapted. It grows on all exposures and all types of topography from desert valley bottoms to the tops of the highest mountain peaks, 2,500 to 13,000 feet in elevation. It invades heavily grazed rangeland, roadsides, waste places, burned areas, and disturbed sites quickly.

• Montana State University
• Utah State University
• Western Wildfire Impact Reduction Center