Echinochloa crus-galli
species of plant
Echinochloa crus-galli is a species of wild grass originating from tropical Asia that was formerly classified as a panicum grass. It is commonly known as cockspur, cockspur grass, barnyard grass, barnyard millet, water grass, cocksfoot grass, cockshin grass. It is sometimes referred to using the general term, barnyard grass, which may refer to any species of the genus Echinochloa. This plant can grow to 1.5 m (5 ft) in height and has long, flat leaves which are often purplish at the base. Most stems are upright, but some will spread out over the ground. Stems are flattened at the base. The seed heads are a distinctive feature, often purplish, with large millet-like seeds in crowded spikelets.
Considered one of the world's worst weeds, it reduces crop yields and causes forage crops to fail by removing up to 80% of the available soil nitrogen. It acts as a host for several mosaic virus diseases. Heavy infestations can interfere with mechanical harvesting.
“Echinochloa crus-galli” enters the record as species of plant. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Echinochloa, crus-galli and species can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 2, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q163527. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Echinochloa crus-galli” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.