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Arizona
Range Grasses Back to the Table of Contents
Growth habit: A small to medium, cool season, perennial
bunchgrass, culms moderately clumped, mostly 5 to 25 inches tall.
Occurrence Widespread and locally abundant occurring in all Arizona
counties from 2,500 to over 10,000 feet. Occurs on open areas into open
woodlands. The plant responds to cool season moisture and can be abundant
in good years and scarce after winter droughts. Forage Value As a cool season bunchgrass, squirreltail is eaten in the spring when growth is young and before maturity. The mature awns are quite stiff and can penetrate the flesh of grazing animals causing injury to soft tissue. Forage value is considered good for larger grazing animals when the plants are young and fair to poor after plants mature depending on whether or not the inflorescence have broken off. As with other cool season grasses, squirreltail will be
grazed readily when it first greens up in the spring. If early spring
grazing occurs, some seed stalks should be left for seed production
and to insure plants are not continually grazed throughout the growing
season. Spring ranges should be rested periodically or grazing limited
to alternating parts of the growing season.
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Cooperative
Extension,College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, The University of
Arizona