quackgrass
(Elymus repens)
Overview
Quackgrass is a perennial, cool-season, rhizomatous grass. The stems are green to whitish, erect to decumbent and can grow to 3 ft (0.9 m) tall. The leaves are 6-15.7 in. (15-40 cm) long and usually have a pair of prominent auricles at the base. Flowering occurs in May to September. The flower spikes are 3.9-11.8 in. (10-30 cm) long and have 3-8 florets per spikelet. Quackgrass is native to Europe and occurs in pastures, gardens, roadsides, and other disturbed open areas.
Resources
- Element Stewardship Abstract - The Nature Conservancy
- Federal Noxious Weed Disseminules of the U.S. - USDA-APHIS
- Weed of the Week - USDA Forest Service
Selected Images
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State List - This map identifies those states that list this species on their invasive species list or law. For more information, visit Invasive.org
Invasive Listing Sources
- Alaska Noxious Weeds
- Arizona Noxious Weeds
- California Noxious Weeds
- City of Ann Arbor Michigan Parks and Recreation
- Colorado Noxious Weeds
- Connecticut Invasive Plant List
- Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
- Hawaii Noxious Weeds
- Hoffman, R. & K. Kearns, Eds. 1997. Wisconsin manual of control recommendations for ecologically invasive plants. Wisconsin Dept. Natural Resources, Bureau of Endangered Resources. Madison, Wisconsin. 102pp.
- Invasive Plant Association of Wisconsin
- Invasive Plant Species of West Virginia
- Iowa Noxious Weeds
- Jil M. Swearingen, Survey of invasive plants occurring on National Park Service lands, 2000-2007
- John Randall, The Nature Conservancy, Survey of TNC Preserves, 1995.
- Kansas Noxious Weeds
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council - Moderate Threat
- Maryland Code and Regulations Noxious Weed & Seed Law
- Michigan Noxious Weeds
- National Park Service, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Plant Management Team Invasive Plant List
- New Hampshire Invasive Plant Species Watch List
- New Mexico Noxious Weeds
- Nonnative Invasive Species in Southern Forest and Grassland Ecosystems
- Pacific Northwest Exotic Pest Plant Council, 1998
- Utah Noxious Weeds - Contain
- WeedUS - Database of Plants Invading Natural Areas in the United States
- West Virginia Native Plant Society, Flora West Virginia Project, and West Virginia Curatorial Database System, September 3, 1999
- Wyoming Noxious Weeds
Taxonomic Rank
| Kingdom: Plantae |
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta |
| Class: Liliopsida |
| Subclass: Commelinidae |
| Order: Cyperales |
| Family: Poaceae |
| Genus: Elymus |
| Subject: Elymus repens (L.) Gould |
Synonyms and Other Names
Other Common Names:
couch grass, dog grass, quickgrass, scutch, quitch, twitch
Related Scientific Names:
Agropyron repens (L.) Gould (Synonym)
Agropyron repens var. subulatum Roem. & Schult. (Synonym)
Elytrigia repens (L.) Gould (Synonym)
Elytrigia vaillantiana (L.) Gould (Synonym)
Triticum repens (L.) Gould (Synonym)
Triticum vaillantianum (L.) Gould (Synonym)