Large Crabgrass

Digitaria sanguinalis

Family: PoaceaeNative: Europe and temperate AsiaIdentified: Sep 15, 2026

An annual warm-season grass characterized by branching, spreading stems that root at the lower nodes and distinctive finger-like seed heads.

Light: Full sun, requiring 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily
Water: Moderate watering requirements, but highly resilient and capable of surviving extended dry periods by going dormant
Growth: Summer annual grass with a sprawling, mat-forming growth habit, reaching heights of 1 to 2 feet with a wide lateral spread

Care instructions

Thrives in full sun with consistent moisture and well-draining soil, though it is highly adaptable to poor conditions and compacted earth.

Full sun, requiring 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily

Moderate watering requirements, but highly resilient and capable of surviving extended dry periods by going dormant

Adaptable to a wide range of well-draining soils with a neutral pH range between 6.0 and 7.0

USDA zones 3 through 10

Summer annual grass with a sprawling, mat-forming growth habit, reaching heights of 1 to 2 feet with a wide lateral spread

Summer to autumn, featuring slender, finger-like racemes arranged in a whorl at the top of the stems

Propagates primarily through seed production, with individual plants capable of producing thousands of seeds that germinate in the spring

Prone to establishing in thin or stressed turfgrass areas; controlled primarily through pre-emergent herbicides and proper turf maintenance

Smooth Crabgrass (Digitaria ischaemum), which can be distinguished by its hairless leaf sheaths compared to the hairy sheaths of large crabgrass